A11 The Third Visit To The Cavern Poem by Rajaram Ramachandran

After the last event,
Everything calmly went.
Francois was very strict
In watching Bernadette.

But Louise, her mother,
Took more pity on her,
Being the eldest daughter,
An innocent sickly creature.

Bernadette was mentally
Always thinking of the Lady,
Though she was physically
At home helping her family.

In Madame Millet’s house
Louise was doing service.
This Madame lost her cousin
Who died at her twenty-seven.

She thought, perhaps, the Lady
Was in her cousin’s body,
That appeared as a spirit
Before this girl Bernadette.

She wanted to visit
The place and meet
Her cousin’s spirit,
Along with Bernadette.

Louise felt too delicate.
To refuse her boss’s request,
While she had her own fear
Of fatal risk to her daughter.

At the same time,
To disappoint Madame,
She was a bit hesitant,
And was not for it

To avoid the crowd
It was then decided
To go to the cavern,
By early next morn.

Louise gave her consent,
And as planned, they went.
The Lady smiled at
The girl Bernadette.

At the Madame’s request
She asked the Lady to write
But nothing was on paper
When it was returned later.

As desired by the Madame,
She asked for the name
But the Lady shook her head
And as a gesture, laughed.

The Lady told her this time,
“Will your grace come
For fifteen days more
To meet me here? ”

“I can’t make any promise,
In this world, your happiness,
But only in the next,
A life, the one best.”

When Bernadette revealed it,
The Madame was quite upset
To know, it wasn’t her cousin
Who spoke there that morn.

In a dilemma, Louise was.
How can she solve this?
“To send her daily or not, ”
This occupied her thought.

Bernarde, Louise’s sister
However, advised her,
“Bernadette is innocent,
She needs our support.”

“Don’t have any fear,
We’ll go with her.
May be, she saw her.
Let us all believe her.”