Your voice

By Arundhati Pandit

Soft as the petals of a rose

Sweet as honey on my tongue

Warm as the summer that thawed the icy, cold winter away

Cold, as the winter that drove the sun away Turbulent as the wind before a storm

No matter what state it was in

Your voice was like the flow of the river through hills and valleys

Always there but never really appreciated Had I known that one day

I will wake up with silence as my companion

I would have stopped to stare at the river a little longer, admiring its curvature, its glittering surface when the sun shone upon it

I would have appreciated your voice more, your opinions here and there

Had I known that

One day I will wake up

2 AM in the morning

With my nightmares on repeat like a song

I would have valued your soft whispers at night, which lulled me to sleep

It's true when they say

You don't know the value of something until it's no longer in your vicinity

And now when I hear its echoes in the hallways

I still shiver at it

By Arundhati Pandit