Somehow, somewhere, peacemakers are keeping hope alive, against all odds. One day, if they win, they will save a lot of lives and humanity on both sides.
By Rahul Mukherji
Sharing here a poem I wrote in January 2014 which highlights that there are no winners in war. The poem is an interaction between a little girl who lost both her parents, and a soldier from the “winning” side . It is an appeal to government and leaders of both countries, please: No war, no violence.
I Told Her A Lie!
I met a little girl
searching for her parents,
from the wilderness of
the world.
I took a paper and
I pointed to the sky.
Rolled it,
and through it I saw a star.
I told her
that there they were
and looking happy.
They will come back soon.
She stared at me
I was on my knees to see
a smile on her lips
and it happened.
She was happy,
there was no doubt.
But I tasted some salt
in my mouth.
Through my wet eyes
I could not see.
As I knew it was a lie.
Words from my eyes did start.
Blood burnt
around my heart.
Will love’s bed be
always snowing here?
She seemed to hear
my silent voice.
But deaf were the mature.
Not love appeals to know peace.
________________________________________
Dedicated to the tears shed silently on both sides of the border due to decades of hostility between India and Pakistan, for one reason or another.
The writer is a management professional from Kolkata, India.
