Treasure

By Aditi Sandeep

https://youtu.be/jt4uA9zge9c

In the quiet of the night when all is silent and dark,

Heart beat in sync with the soft ticking of the clock.

I lie in bed with eyes closed and limbs relaxed,

Then recount the day that was, as time elapsed.

Images of loved ones mine, flash upon,

Screen behind my eyelids, montages run.

Brief seconds pause upon a smiling face,

Their many actions and words I retrace.

A rush of love and gratitude to the universe,

For their presence makes my life so luminous.

The joy of family is the gift that keeps on giving,

Simple pleasures of life bring content so fulfilling.

Ensconced in my blanket so warm,

In this moment I am placid, I am calm.

Eyes heavy with the weight of slumber,

Breathing deep in and out, I surrender.

A brief lull and then storm clouds start to gather,

Ominous feelings of fear swirling faster and faster.

The smiling faces now stretched in a yawn of pain,

Disappear one by one, until only I, single remain.

Sleep snaps and I awake in a start,

Panic and anxiety jab at my heart.

Throat constricts with a lump of dread

Even one person gone, I’d lose my head.

I begin to worry, worry, worry,

Dinner lurches treacherous in my tummy.

My once relaxed mind and body,

Now heart pounding, hands all clammy.

Sleep has flown straight out the window,

It nests with birds asleep in the trees.

I turn to the man I love, face mushed into his pillow.

Watching his familiar form rise and fall in peace.

Breathing in rhythm, darkness slowly adjusts to grey.

Shifting sounds of the world settling after the day.

Moving shadows that play softly on the wall,

The sigh of the rustling breeze and a lone wolf’s call.

I close my eyes and look to my centre.

Truth be told, the future I know not ever.

I love my sons, my husband and father.

I love my home, my sister and mother.

Life and death are two ends of a line.

I am but a thread in between that binds’.

To have love and be loved is my greatest treasure,

My promise to stay by their side through every weather.

Relaxed once more, I let go of the things I cannot control.

My body like sand, sinks to the mattress, worries no more.

By Aditi Sandeep