The Echoing Hills
K. Radhakumar *
All my thoughts
Noble ideals
Well, all cloud not be translated
Into action, into reality.
The old man in me
Wrinkled with age smiles
'What of it?'
I saw a flowering plant
Half buried in a landslide
A mass of red earth and rock
Sliding down the hillside
As I passed through
The northern range of hills of Manipur.
The weeping trees
The hilltop covered with dark clouds -
The sight cast a shadow over my mind
And made me weep.
With tears welling up in my eyes
I turned to look at
The beauty covered in dirt.
Wow ! It was a terrific sight !
The red, red flower
Perching on a sea of mud
It looked the image of a virgin
Allowed to leave unmolested
By the spirit of the hills.
How it got mixed up in the predicament
And slid down the hillside is beyond me.
Life is not naked beauty
But is wrapped in mystery
And is beautiful, simple beautiful.
I am afraid I completely misread the situation
And wept for joy.
* Poem written by K. Radhakumar which was published at The Sangai Express
This poem was webcasted on August 20, 2017.
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