Knowledge

The Present

Abundance

Mindfulness

Give

Akashdeep

It is on such a beautiful night
That she comes home again
Led by the lamp set for her
On the terrace by her husband.

She stands in front of the tulsi,
Where she prayed everyday
To let her go first to God
Nor to lead a life without him.

Then she looks at her husband
Who lies asleep by the lamp
On his favourite armchair,
With a heart heavy with woe.

Dressed in red like a bride
With jewels all glittering
And eyes dancing with love,
She comes close to him.

She kisses his sleeping face
And caresses his stubble,
She runs her fond fingers
And plays with his soft hair.

She hums a delightful tune,
With a lamp in her brown hands,
“Where shall I put my lamp?
Where shall I set my heart?”

You did not hold me by force
You held in your arms gently
Nor have I left you alone
But am with you always".

The lamp goes out, dawn breaks
He sighs and smiles in his sleep,
But she leaves without any trace,
Only in his dreams and sad eyes.

Family Heirloom

The first among the heirlooms was a strong voice
One of contradiction and strife that hung over us,
With each and every good occasion hampered
By the tears of some sorcery or pure discord.

Among the signs of feasting were the skeletons
Skeletons in the cupboard that could bring
Multiple calamities and emotional disasters
Though it might have been an era of sunshine.

What this clan received as heirloom was eerie-
An absence of joie de vivre or an angst of life
That stayed on a like a perpetual thundercloud
And burst into rains even in days of sunshine.

Yet the strength of this clan lies in its heirloom
Of being ever-ready in the face of disasters.