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| Archana Bahadur Zutshi |
Pangs of Desperation
The hand had slipped from the clasp
The toddler trudged on a new path
Tears were stroked
Heart was choked
With dismay and disbelief.
The portals so large and the child meek,
The strangeness was pronounced,
A judgment pronounced–
'Tis no punishment from strangers!
Is this the story of a life?
From loved ones, from the safe environs
You must bid farewell.
To new portals, unsteady at first,
Soon enough the ground is gained.
To be grounded in life, one must prevail.
Cyclic fullness is no myth.
Mere a renewal of path,
Trodden, yet reaching new vistas
Of another dimension of learning.
The journey continues,
Patterns bear semblance to seasons.
We wake and sleep, we fall and rise.
The sun rises through the year
In different seasons.
Different passions are kissed
In different flowers by the same sun.
***
A Timely Recall
Skimming mind with recall of the imprints of the past.
Mapping the roads with my paces,
Surprised at how the day passes.
Shorter than the longish stretches of yore.
Now become light, the day has started racing.
The slight heart's fondness still lingers
On the scenes, places where I grew up.
I knock on the known doors,
Waiting welcomes are pinned on me
Like roses...sweet-bitter are the partings.
Some known faces are in the heart
Nothing fades with time, a slight
Embrace is the erasure of all the slights of farewell pain.
Celebratory cheers of friends, festival bound.
***
Unbidden Farewells
As she turned around, Neeta had her words
Ring into her ears,
Which her friend spoke nonchalantly,
"My husband believes in bidding a proper bye
As you never know, it could be the last goodbye".
Ever since then, she too became particular.
Her weak goodbye had metamorphosed now
Into a robust one.
She turned around and stood facing him
Waving a hand in slow motion,
Not jerkily doing with the parting and be done.
Her heart was giving all in that one moment.
Centred on her sole attention, her loved one.
Her lingering goodbye did not last enough.
He was killed the next morning in an accident.
Farewell to another dimension, the sweet-bitter lore of love!
She focuses on her now and here.
Memories of family, the loved ones is a tsunami of sorts!
The reminder greets you with love
And kindness which is the summation
of life!
Farewells are never final, nostalgia and warmth
Keeps the cockles of our hearts warm.
Concretizing the faith in love and humanity!
***
Bio: Dr Archana Bahadur Zutshi is an educator, poet, author, translator. She authored chapters of literary merit, co-authored twenty-one international anthologies and journals. 'Poetic Candour (2019),'The Speaking Muse (2020), Careless Verse Whispers (2021, Kindle) are her solo verse collections. Her fourth book Full Throated Stirrings is a recent collection of poems (July, 2024)
Her fifth poetry books is forthcoming. A winner at Panorama International Festival 2022, she adjudged poetry contests. 'Culturium' (March 18, 2019) featured her book ‘Poetic Candour' in Culturium. Her second book The Speaking Muse features in 'Asian Extract’ Co-authoured anthologies of verse such as The Kali Project: Invoking the Goddess Within You Don't Look Sick. Born to Dream, Spotlight, Verse Victories are the anthologies by Poetry Planet Publishing House. Christmas Anthology, A New Dawn (two poems), Lockdown 2020 by The Poet House, UK.
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