Past Poem by Neela Nath Das

Past, you are so near
That I can touch the light
You bestowed upon me,
In my infancy.
You are the witness
of my youthful energy!
You walked all the way
From birth to the lonesome
Way of Present, now,
I am walking along.
Golden is the memory
I passed with my neighbors
Of my birthplace.
I see the vivid clips
Of those mirthful days!
Grandpa, grandma and the
People of their age,
Listening to the chanting
Of The Ramayana or
The Mahabharata on some
Other days, and
Drinking tea, chatting.....
They fade in and fade out,
The ups and downs of their
Voices snatch my sleep.
But, then too happiness
Crawls back into my
Sleepless nights.
In my days of turbulence,
Those blissful memories
Wipe the grief of the Present.

You are with me,
So, I'm alive, or,
You are alive,
So I'm not dead.

In your fold I have kept
my best days I beguiled
with my father, mother
and my kins.
I'll keep you with me,
Until I slip into
Your invisible fold!