by Lakshmi Sukumaran

Created on: December 21, 2007

SONG OF SORROW

The land was dull and dour
The sun hidden among the clouds
And even the day smelled of damp.

Crowds of people with masked faces
Eyeing me with amusement,
But not the face I longed to see.

Unmasked, it lay inside,
Lifeless and shrouded in white
And oblivious to the life around.

The moment I loathed always
And hoped falsely would never befall me!
But death is the only reality in life!

How cruel of gods to shower upon me
The flowers of the evening
Those wither and die as the day goes on.

Flames ate into her mortal being
And rituals performed for the holy soul
That refused to leave the earthly beings.

The house is now shorn of its light
As the lady of house has departed
And the light is gone from my home too.

Love, laughter, agony, bondage
Images passing by, and of celebration too!
Still many left in mystery.

What inconceivable sorrow lingered in your eyes?
What unbearable pain throbbed in your heart?
That you smiled away for us?

Words left untold; deeds left undone
Moments never to be recaptured
All gnawing at my heart.

What awaits me now God?
What shore for me now to anchor
When your mighty things confront my voyage?!

The stillness of time suffocates me
As I wander through my memories
But they say,' Time is the great healer!'

Words cannot measure the depth of my grief
Tears cannot settle my roaring mind
Here I am orphaned and wingless.

Days are longer; nights are darker
Life streams on sans its soul
And my self is in mutiny.

The fallen trees cry out their hearts,
Wild forces collide with each other
But I stay on, reminiscing my past through the dead.

Yet, the soul, beyond all pain and suffering
In the emptiness and holiness of the other world
Soothes this mortal being.

Embedded in my heart
Your face and the blue veins in your hands
And your loving gaze on me through the glass frame

Paths to be trodden, rewards to be reaped
In a life, vast as an ocean
Before I sleep and depart, forever!

Learn more about this author, Lakshmi Sukumaran.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.