In the Flickering
Walk me through
your cave
show me the petroglyphs
the stories
you have laboriously pecked on the walls
with your hammer stone,
carved in the light of a lantern
where shadows cast gloom.
I want to see. I want to run
my warm hands along
cold rocks to decipher forms
and feel their rugged ridges.
This light is dim. I need a better view.
Hold my hand and place it where
the scenes begin
that you have etched, with squinted eyes
by a flickering lamp.
I trace them lightly,
my fingers grow numb—
in your cave’s icy hollows
there is no echo of love,
even your stories are silent.
Are you still here or am I
alone?
(c) Neetu Malik
Some of Neetu’s Books
-
life spills . . .
forming red rivulets in sand
in the vast desert
man’s fury against man
reasons I do not understand -
spring has come
and gone
summer breeze nudges
dense foliage to dance -
they said to remember crawdads
asked me to listen for their song
when my heart was heavy
and my sorrow dark -
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.
-
the wolves are quiet tonight
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Evocative and poignant!
Thank you, Veronica. I appreciate your comments very much.