By Shambhavi Sinha
(to, dadi)
Your eyes telling a story
Of the last 72 years I missed and forgot
Your taste in sarees , I remember
Still as classic, the colour of a peridot.
You covered your head with the hem of the cloth,
While you prayed to the lord
What might could have you asked for?
It stays a mystery
as a chance to ever ask, I never got.
Your wrinkly hands, caressing my cheeks
A feeling of warmth and love spreading ,
it was a bliss
Your face ethereal,
shining with years of joys and pain
Your bangles were vibrant,
you are the best, I always claim
I remember sitting beside you
in the prayer hall, half asleep
You let me lean on your shoulder,
making sure mine never got stiff
I remember how you laughed,
laughed till your tummy hurt
It was so contagious, it made me laugh too,
it was quite a blur.
From coming out of your room,
to check on me during my finals week
To being the first person
to know that I topped history
Always knowing what I took in lunch to school on days
‘Did you drink enough water today?’
you made sure I was healthy and gay
From Laughing upon the funny drawings
I did on your face with a pen
to asking me to do your makeup when I was eleven
I knew, you were better than me in everything
Creativity in the room you would always bring
you hummed to all my songs
became my personal critic on the notes that went wrong
A lady so classy, so elegant
‘I love solving algebra’ you said ,
it was indeed meant.
In my dreams , you ran again
You played in mud in the rain, still as kind
Your knees had no pain
playing with moti, your childhood friend
Peace of soul, calmful mind
But this time, you were the nine year old girl again
Listening to nursery rhymes.
The lady I look up to,
a lady with a bag filled with dreams
the same lady, the heaven gained,
snatched away with unfair means.
You were the lady, I was the girl,
I learnt from you
The techniques to survive in this world,
Courage - of standing up against the wrong
kindness - for everyone around
happiness – to which everyone was bound
beauty, of seeing the good, surrounding us all around
You taught me a lot , gave me a curve
A message , given from The lady to a girl.