By Keerthana Venkatesh
Contributing Author for Spark Igniting Minds
Standing under the huge metal arch
A smile glittered my face
This was a moment I knew would come
But never with such grace...
The dark, cold alleys, sweaty with moss
Touched my cheek and swept my feet
Combed my hair and gelled my scalp
With tenderness that tolled me back…
My mother’s fingers would caress my hair
While my child filled himself with mud
And then suddenly there would be a swish
A bucket of cold water straining my blood…
The strain comes back to throb my brain
Standing at the edge of the altar
The cloth of destiny covering my head
Reminding me of a shame I never feared...
The thought comes back of that gross day
When I saw my little girl soaked in red
With the woman I married smiling sanctified –
I rid the mother she once had...
The smile deepened on my face
A sweaty glow returned
The ground under me split apart
And my little girl and I walked on.
(Featured Image from pexels.com)
About the Author
Keerthana Venkatesh is a passionate writer with a penchant for positivism via thoughts, actions and alternative therapies.
She has worked on the editorial of some of India’s biggest media houses and as content management and marketing head in various corporates.
An avid traveler and a doting mother, she finds inspiration and the energy of positivism through places, people and her daughter which she showcases in her blog titled "This Short Story"!