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| Satbir Chadha |
SPRING AND THE SOLDIER
Today I heard the first koel, as I stepped out in the morning
It sounded like the plaintive cry of a parting soldier’s bride
The wistful notes reverberated through the air suddenly crisp
And the sky so clear and blue
Gone was the frost and the fragrant spill
Overflow of beaming colourful flowers
Masters of the bounteous spring
Had spring then left my town
On soft padded feet, as softly as it had come
The first nascent flowers I’d mistaken for snowflakes
For the winter chill had still been upon us
Then suddenly the land was all awash
Redolent and green was the ground
Every pore burst forth with brilliant sprouts
The hedges and trellises and the red painted pots
Radiant flowers filled them all
A thousand rainbows had descended on the earth
The heart clings to the butterfly’s wings
Hovers inebriated over the iridescent blossoms
Drinks the sweet nectar and duly swoons
As youth needs to be, to be drunk on the spring
But today I heard the koel sing
That spring is so many other things
The shepherd’s flute and the soldier’s salute
For now as the snow melts, both move up the mountains
One guards the sheep and brings them home
The soldier guards the nation
Maybe for them, the winter was spring
To each his own designation
How beautifully portrayed- the culmination of emotions of the soilder, the bride and the shephard. Loved the poem ❤️
ReplyDeleteThank you my dear Divya
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