Kumud

By Apurvaa Pandey

She is strength, she is beauty, she is the moon,

Bringing with her a silent peaceful boon,

It is the gift of life I hear them croon,

I call her mom and the two of us are always humming the same tune.

I notice her carry weight of the world, 

Wondering what next God will serve,

In all the pain and struggle she smiles,

And calls life beautiful which I now have to travel alone by miles.

With each passing day, I see her fade away into darkness little by little,

And yet she feels assured by my inner strength which she says is not so little.

I notice her cope up with loss of life and 

Clinging to her stole I pray for her life.

Undisputedly pure, in her never-ending absence, 

her now celestial love becomes my guiding light.

She might have gone to another world, 

but I know she is watching me bloom like a flower.

Her name, Kumud, too meant a pure pious flower,

Which blooms in mud against the backdrop of moon and stars.

Night doesn’t deter her, and cancer doesn’t scare her,

Alone she might have been in this realm, but there are heavenly beings,

Impressed by her grace and strength, ready to shower flowers on her.

For the world she might be dead, but for me she lives eternally.

Passing on her essence of grace, wisdom, and strength to me,

Making me her flagbearer in this realm.

I’m her daughter, I’m her strength,

Till the time I live, I will carry the scent of her essence.

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By Apurvaa Pandey