Tuesday, June 27, 2017

O India, My Motherland!

A plea of a migrant to her motherland:
 
O India, my motherland,
My identity and my pride!
My soul seeks nourishment,
Only your bosom can provide!

 
Your children share
Candor and still bond,
where conflicts are ajar,
Yet harmony is strong!

 
Your iridescent culture,
Your diversity entwined soul,
All colors, all shades,
Every Indian makes you whole!

 
Dilli, your very heart!
houses a conscience,
Woven intricately with
Every element of your essence.

 
A global inspiration for
Unity in diversity
Thrives on differences,
My viberant city!

 
When I was a child,
The rain was enough,
To wet our lives
with happiness and love!

 
Our contentment,
Money didn’t dictate,
There was more felicity,
We could take!

 
Laughter rang in the air,
No dearth of games to play,
Without any technology,
We were happy and gay!

 
And the magical travel,
On the chuk-chuk trains
Through the rivers, the fields,
And the mountains!

 
Then our world changed,
I began to grow,
What it meant to be a girl,
I began to know...

 
It was tough to have
a mind of my own,
Freedom with subjection,
A lifestyle, I was shown!

 
I experienced first hand,
Tragedy and pain!
How can the powerful
Become so inhumane?

 
I attended from close
the human suffering,
Lack of God's control,
Was always so puzzling!

 
Work and relations
held my hand,
Took me to many voyages,
To visit my mother land!

 
I traveled from
Kashmir to Kanyakumari,
Spoke to Gujarati,
Bengali, Marathi and Bihari.

 
I recall the villagers
and the delicious food
They offered on the leaves
cooked with love and gratitude!

 
They taught me
The secrete of strength,
Grounded in simplicity,
Not dependent on wealth.

 
Amongst all the hardships,
Women's agony was worse!
Rape, abuse and exploitation,
For many, life was a curse!

 
To see a woman's ordeal,
There's no need to travel,
If not all, every other house,
Witnessed her battle!

 
Dilli, heart of India
Tell me, why
Respect for women
is still an outcry?

 
Women proved themselves
Over and over again,
Indira to Pratibha but
Women still live in disdain!

 
India, my motherland,
Tell me, why
The female fetuses
Still have to die?

 
Why 'Independent Woman',
Is still an enigma?
Why honor is not attached
To dignity but to her vagina?

 
Slowly but surely,
Things are changing,
With education and experience
Mother India is evolving.

 
However, for those
Who are comfortable with
Patriarchy and misogyny,
‘Azad Naari' is still a myth!

 
I yearn to come back,
But I fear for my dignity,
Would my choices be accepted
Or will I face hostility?

 
I collect a handful of
Courage everyday,
To return and serve,
My motherland one day!

 
I dream of surrounded by
Women of all ages,
Learning and sharing about
Freedom from our cages!

 
I can hear the chuckles,
I also expect tears,
Oh, the energy of togetherness,
Will chase away the fears!

 
I visualize walking together,
On a higher road,
With our chins high,
No-one will our hope erode!

 
May the honor and dignity,
Of your women,
Oh mother India, always
Flourish and sustain!

 
Our historical heritage,
will guide us to Unity,
In spite of any differences,
We will bond with integrity!

 
In our society, those who
Inject hatred and violence
Daughters of India,
Will demonstrate defiance!

 
O India, my motherland,
Your daughter longs to return,
To caress and serve you,
And to contribute and learn!

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