 |
| Kavita Ezekiel Mendonca |
Kavita Ezekiel Mendonca has been a teacher of English and a Career Counselor, in an international school in India, and has taught French and Spanish in private schools in Canada. Her poems have been published in various journals and anthologies, including the Yearbook of Indian Poetry in English and The Journal of Indian Poetry in English by Sahitya Akademi. Her first book ‘Family Sunday and other Poems’ was published in 1989 and a chapbook ‘Light of the Sabbath’ in September 2021. She was nominated for a Pushcart Prize for her poem “How to Light Up a Poem” in 2020.
***
Loneliness
My loneliness sits on the bench
no one can see it except me
well camouflaged, hidden in depths
beyond reach of man or even God perhaps.
In calmness the river flows by the bench
it assures me it will keep my secret
if I don’t wish to share it,
the trees vow not to tell
every leaf and every branch
promise to remain silent.
The wind around the trees is still
so I have nothing to worry about
and there are no birds
to carry the secret of my loneliness
to the sky full of clouds.
***
Quietude
My father desired quietude
an ordered mind, love and truth
I learned quietude, the word and the concept
from him.
I have a photograph of him
sitting on a different bench
looking towards the heavens
calm and peaceful, his mind full of poems.
The bench shapes his silhouette
His words engraved on the leaves and branches
comfort me,
the roots of the trees
have not buried his lines.
The soil is more fertile
with his wisdom
where the roots run deep.
I must talk to the roots
to discover
my own quietude.
***
Absence
To sit with you
on the bench donated by a loved one
overlooking the Glenmore Reservoir
as we once did many a time
watching the water rolling swirling
as The Captain’s Cruise
sails by majestically,
is to know completeness of presence.
To hear you cheering at
The Dragon Boat Race Festival
listening to your laughter
seeing the ducklings follow mother duck
taking pictures of the sun on the water
is to feel the fullness of life.
To drive back home with you
the sounds of your happy chatter
filling my heart to overflowing
is to cherish
the richness of our bond.
But you are far away
The bench is empty
There’s more room here than I need.
Your absence teaches me
of pain far too intense
A lesson I would rather not have learned.
***
So touching, thank you
ReplyDelete