Where Shall We Go?

Where shall we go?

The rich paddy fields have disappeared.

Springs, ponds and waterholes are visions

Enthralling us in our sleep.

June’s advent makes us flutter;

The excitement mounting

With the advance of monsoon.    

The storm and the rain,

And the rising water,

Floating and croaking,

Mating   and spawning,

Streams and ponds and puddles,

Soon bubbling with infinite tadpoles.

Future warriors of nature!

Feeding on insects and mosquitoes,

Harmful to nature and man,

Farmers’ friends, occasionally hunted,

Never, we grudged our delicious legs,

           For, we were aplenty.                

           But now our wetland usurped,

We sit dismally in waterholes

 Shallow, dirty and poisoned

Deprived of food, deprived of water

Chemical fertilizers, pesticides, our bane

We die in hordes, of hunger,

    Thirst and poison.              

We are now a handful of survivors;

Tired of fighting a vain battle;

Living each day wondering

Where shall we go?               

               (A heart felt cry from the soul of Earth Mother.   Are we ready to listen to her?)

 What Am I Now?

What am I now? A haven once!

Now a shriveling wasteland.

The oceans, once a blue girdle

Swelling unfathomably

 Swallows me, python-like

The azure sky, a diadem

Adorning my head,

 Now deprives me
 Of life-giving air.      

My children, the humans -

Destroy my forests, trees, rivers,

 Hills, and vales rebelliously.

The living land - to cement jungle

And garbage pits reduced.     

I don’t know what I am now!

I am sick with cyclones,

Tremors and fire storms,

Yet the thirst for survival besets me.

Senile, losing control of body and spirit

I wonder!  Do my children,

My earthlings, see my struggle?

Will they revive me to survive,                              

harmoniously with them?                

LIFE

Life

Once I realized life is all about living and thanksgiving to the almighty and not to be wasted away pining for things most often you don’t get, regretting about unreciprocated love, friendship misunderstood, not being liked etc. etc   I came out of my cocoon stage armed with love, love, love, love only for all things animate and inanimate And life became one of giving, giving, giving, only  and never worrying about not getting anything in return.  My personal grievances if ever they emerged were ardently laid at the feet of My Lord, my friend   who never failed me. And life all of a sudden became rich and rainbow coloured. And  I started blooming. 

                    It was like observing things for the first time. I saw, I heard, I felt, I tasted and I smelled the essence of life around me. For the first time I started living vibrantly, looking only for the element of divinity in others and what kept them ticking. I saw no evil; if at all I perceived negativity, I ignored it and hoped for the best. I went closer to Nature. 

                         Trees, once a childhood passion, are   now   my next of kin. The wild trees I have planted around my home are loved and cherished passionately. The breadfruit tree, whose branches rest on my rooftop was often mercilessly pruned, out of respect for the voice of prudence around me. But it hurt me when her life sap oozed out. I would talk to her and console her empathizing with her and begging her to forgive me. And she does forgive me by bearing a few fruits every year on that part of the terrace where I can pick without any one’s aid.

             I planted the egg fruit tree, the mango trees, the chikkoo tree, the mulberry bush   and many other plants for the birds and the squirrels. And they are there from morn till even. Their chirping and twittering are music to my ears. I often call out to them and invite them to feed on the rice grains or bread crumbs I scatter for them. No wonder they come searching for me, especially my black and white robin, my wild friend who comes to my kitchen window everyday without fail. He is a wonder to everyone. He comes right into my kitchen or dining room as if searching for me. One day my husband found him perched on my bedroom window bars as I was praying.

               What more did I need? I learned love was the answer. Every thing around us responds to the vibration of love in whatever way it is expressed. I learned the great truth of unconditional love. Never again, I decided, would I despair of unreciprocated love. I found joy in giving love and that sufficed and it drew me closer to my Almighty.

                                    And in my human relationships too I found changes. I started accepting people with all their faults, stopped being judgmental, and just let them be. For I had learned that I receive only what I send out. If I send out love I get back love, if I send out a positive prayer I get back a positive prayer. So life has become easier for me. Nothing matters any more only living joyfully and thankfully to God, counting the in-numerous blessings that come my way even without asking.

Child

A child is  innocence wrapped in pleasure. The cynosure  of every eye. Kanaka pondered. It was the same excitement she saw in almost all homes where there is a new born babe.  But soon he/she   emerges the ruler of the home asserting their tiny world of independence.

Tiny World

Little round eyes rolling,

Tiny hands and legs

 Beating in the air,

Smiling with your toothless gum,

You steal

The onlooker’s heart.

This charm of winning,

Everyone’s affection and love,

Wanes away,

As you stand on your feet

Asserting your tiny world of independence.

Life

“That it will never come again / Is what makes life so sweet.”

                        Emily Dickinson