A Dream Poem by Sharad Rajimwale

An old woman, bent at the waist
trundles through driving snow
seeking a bridge
to the stars, - - - far, far above....

While the little girl
in her birthday frock, deep in sleep moves through constellations of
bright, twinkling dreams.

For a long time the old woman's apparition
tumbled along
hearing nothing but snapping
branches of
crashing trees,
and whistling winds in a world
gone desolate and bleak...

The girl, grown up into a pretty woman,
stretches on the tender turf
all alone
under the sky washed blue
feeling gentle air on her face,
blinking at dancing flowers
all around her
and wheeling birds far above
close to the mound of earth,
an unknown grave,
recalling to her mind the dream
that filled
her fairy-tale nights long, long ago.

- - - Sharad Rajimwale

Jodhpur, India
28-07-2014