Backwater Song by Neetu

May 26, 2026 by in category Poet's Day by Neetu Malik tagged as , , , , with 0 and 0
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Backwater Song

they said to remember crawdads
asked me to listen for their song
when my heart was heavy
and my sorrow dark

but I was young, too young
and memories clung to
bark and thistle left behind

now it’s time I know
to retrace my steps
into that forest
slowly, cautiously, though

eyes closed, feeling only
with my hands the way
I’ve walked before

my senses know better
than my eyes

travelled roads

I reach the backwater
past the labyrinthine path
pain and anguish in my heart

and hear at dusk
the crawdads’ song.

© Neetu Malik


Some of Neetu’s Books


Author Bio
Author Bio
Born in India, Neetu has lived in Austria, England, and Canada before settling in the Eastern USA in 1994. Neetu’s eclectic work reflects her diverse background as she explores the joy and darkness of the human condition in poems and stories noteworthy for their intensity in brief span. Her poetry is published in journals and Anthologies from Australia, USA, UK, and India. Her poem, “Soaring Flames”, was awarded First-Place by the NY Literary Magazine (2017). She has also been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, 2019 for her poem “Sacred Figs” published by Kallisto Gaia Press in their Ocotillo Review in May, 2018.
  • Backwater Song by Neetu

    they said to remember crawdads
    asked me to listen for their song
    when my heart was heavy
    and my sorrow dark

  • Neetu Malik: Featured Author

    Neetu Malik’s poetry is an expression of life’s rhythms and the beat of the human spirit. She draws upon diverse multicultural experiences and observations across three continents in which she has lived.

  • Thunder  by Neetu

    the wolves are quiet tonight

  • Neetu Malik: Featured Author

    Neetu Malik’s poetry is an expression of life’s rhythms and the beat of the human spirit. She draws upon diverse multicultural experiences and observations across three continents in which she has lived.

  • Neetu Malik: Featured Author

    Neetu Malik’s poetry is an expression of life’s rhythms and the beat of the human spirit. She draws upon diverse multicultural experiences and observations across three continents in which she has lived.

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Born in India, Neetu has lived in Austria, England, and Canada before settling in the Eastern USA in 1994. Neetu’s eclectic work reflects her diverse background as she explores the joy and darkness of the human condition in poems and stories noteworthy for their intensity in brief span. Her poetry is published in journals and Anthologies from Australia, USA, UK, and India. Her poem, “Soaring Flames”, was awarded First-Place by the NY Literary Magazine (2017). She has also been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, 2019 for her poem “Sacred Figs” published by Kallisto Gaia Press in their Ocotillo Review in May, 2018.

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