“Mountains are formed over a period of time,
Galaxies change their shapes gradually
& we grow old slowly.”
1
Gather your pebbles, each one,
& gather your firewood, day by day —
The hearth won’t burn as bright every day and
Often the water will take longer to boil on the flame.
Not every day will be sunny, or perhaps warm enough;
Some days, there won’t be enough firewood,
And sometimes your water bucket will leak—
but you will be okay…
2
Sometimes the roof will leak, and the lights will go out—
Sometimes your stomach will rumble in hunger and
The cupboard will be empty in the dead of the night—
Sometimes the stove won’t work properly, and some nights
You won’t be able to sleep, tossing and turning in your bed—
And the long night will refuse to pass—
But all darkness turns to light, slowly and steadily—
and you will be okay…
3
You will know heartbreak—
For all who know love,
must come to know grief…
Sometimes your chest will ache with love,
because you want to tell someone
how much you love them,
For you’re quite sure they don’t quite know;
And sometimes they won’t care…
No matter how much you love them,
They might speak a different language of love—
Yet you will love again—and lose again—
And come to grief again, and gradually—
you will be okay…
4
Some days you may be loved
more than you ever imagined—
And some days you won’t receive the love you need,
And some days: none at all.
Perhaps being in love is like a garden:
Some days are meant for bright blossoms,
And some days are meant for quiet breezes,
And some for falling leaves & bloomless winters—
Perhaps love is all about waiting and patience,
and about letting go…
Perhaps like the mighty oaks—
love grows strong roots slowly…
5
Some days you will miss, and stay forgotten—
Some days you will be missed, and forget to care…
Some days you won’t be as perfect as you think—
Some days you will be wrong, and unfair, and selfish…
And on other days, you will learn to be patient, and kind, and forgiving.
One by one, you will prune the weeds and tend to the garden of the Self…
Over long days and long nights—
Slow as the dawn, learning from our mistakes—
we will grow old slowly…
6
Sometimes it will be difficult, and painful,
and you will curl up into the darkness
and weep your heart out in the silence—
And you’ll never want to go out in the light again—
But step by step, day by day, your pain will lessen…
Sometimes the memories of the pain will hold you back,
And sometimes the future’s hope will give you courage—
And day by day, you will be whole, out of all the pieces—
just like mountains are formed over a period of time…
7
Maybe you once liked your eggs scrambled,
but now you like them boiled—
Maybe you loved picking apples and biting them,
but now the taste of cider makes you sick—
Maybe you hated cloudy days once, but now
You get that you need them once in a while—
You are—and become—as you change:
Bit by bit and taste by taste…
Memories fade and newer ones are made—
Many loves are born and lost in the long course of life—
we are like galaxies, changing their shapes gradually…
8
You will lose people.
As time passes,
people will make their entrances
and their exits—
and you must let them.
As days come and days go, so do all things,
ever-returning, ever-renewing—
Someone you talked to everyday,
but whose name now slips your mind:
only a faint snug warmth remains now—
Someone you wished would talk to again,
but remembers you no more,
slowly fading into the oblivion—
Strangers come, and strangers go,
and we know them only ever so briefly…
and that’s okay…
9
Sometimes you will be invisible,
and not find the attention you need—
Sometimes your struggles will go unnoticed,
and all your sacrifices unappreciated—
Sometimes you will be jealous and resentful
of the attention that others get—
Sometimes you will feel that you don’t exist
or that your existence doesn’t make a difference.
Like the moon that is lost in the anvil’s darkness,
You too will get lost at times in the new moons of life—
You will struggle to hold yourself together and in time,
you will find the light you seek within you—
and you will be okay…
10
Sometimes you will find yourself flooded
with attention, and praise, and cheers—
Sometimes a million fans will cheer you ahead,
and you will feel great in their chorus—
Sometimes you will revel in the limelight,
proud of what is deservedly yours—
And at times, the cacophony will stifle and suffocate you too.
Sometimes your struggles will fetch you a million validations,
yet each as hollow and perfunctory as the next:
they will not warm your heart—
Sometimes you will find it hard to know what or who is genuine…
Sometimes you will be trapped within the millions’ gaze,
and forget who you were once—
but you will be okay…
11
Some days love will run dry—
Some days the sparks won’t fly,
and the love will feel like an irritation—
Sometimes there will be nothing new to talk about,
for days and weeks on end—
Sometimes, in the monotony, you will question
why you bother to stay and not move on…
Perhaps you will remember the birds
whose wings take them to places afar,
yet who choose to return home each day.
Perhaps you will remember the cattle who graze newer pastures,
and yet come home happily at the call of the eventide—
Sometimes love is silent, and invisible, and deaf, and mute—
and you will be okay…
12
Sometimes it will be time to let go,
no matter how hard or devastating it feels…
Houses become cages,
and families become prisons,
and places become poisonous,
and no matter how much the comfort of familiarity,
You have to brave the unfamiliar for your own sake.
Old idols, however sacred, must be immersed in the water,
and newer ones made out of the fresh, wet clay…
Sometimes life unmakes you—
and sometimes you have to do it yourself…
Keep repairing and renewing,
with care and gentleness—
and you will be okay…
13
Sometimes your emails will remain unanswered,
and your DMs and notifications will overflow—
Sometimes you will ignore some messages,
or forget to reply to people—
Let not the crowd of applauding followers make you forget
that they do not own you, or your attention, or your time.
You cannot rescue the whole world, nor heal all its woes—
no matter how sad it makes you to realize that—
Beyond the race for likes and comments and views,
Be gentle on yourself first, and begin your own healing,
for you too belong to this world—
and you will be okay…
14
Not all hearts mend, or become whole.
Not all wounds heal, or become whole.
Not all lights shine throughout, or brightly enough.
Even in all your brokenness,
Amidst all your pain and grief,
Through the dark nights of the soul,
May you find yourself—and keep yourself—
in your own serenity.
Let the days come like leaves on the branches of your life—
Growing and falling, bearing both joy and sorrow—
and may they keep you in contentment.
May you be at peace,
whoever you are,
wherever you are…
15
“You are a child of the universe,
no less than the trees and the stars:
you have a right to be here.”
You will go through the seasons
of joy, ecstasy, sorrow, and grief—
And you will grow buds, and bloom, and wilt—
And you will wax, and wane, and wax again…
And your skies will be filled with stars—
And be cloudy and be sunny—
And the earth beneath your feet will be fertile and be barren,
And many storms and breezes will blow by your life’s chapters—
You will find your sun, and wind, and water—
and you will be okay…
16
“Mountains are formed over a period of time,
Galaxies change their shapes gradually
& we grow old slowly.”
May you be at peace,
whoever you are,
wherever you are.
For all of us—
Delhi, 2023