In all my stress and distress,

I found you close;

My faithful companion

Hope, beautiful hope!

We sat by the Ganges together

You soothed my angst;

Remember the tempestuous night

When I was wrapped in your arms?

The day he disappeared…

Then after eons,

He appeared amid the ghastly mist,

Igniting flames in my frosty heart.

I became prey to the cave of illusion

Till he marred my soul

Saying, “It’s over. Move on!”

And he walked away, leaving behind scars.

I ran to my dark, somber room

In search of you…

You gazed at my blubbery eyes

And sighed in pity;

Then drifted away in steady steps.

Moonlight fails to soothe my skin

The mellifluous tune of sitar

Seems like a widow mourning;

Leaves don’t rustle, they just wail.

Nothing is same,

As my hope is a stranger today.