Death's Shadow Passes By Poem by Anita Shanti Joseph

Death – follows me
A shadow of a friendly dog
Who wags his tail
His is a familiar face.
What surging pain capsulates me
To be separated from a beloved one
The soul seems to have blown apart
The body ties break – it bleeds
Wreath of flowers, wreak work of havoc.
The deadly claws of vultures
Feed on the raw flesh, plucking it out
The body dissipates everyday
It ages, turning weak
The mill will cease to grind
It ends all… meaninglessness creeps in
A dry river dead, left vacant, lifeless
It turns cold, a sawed-down trunk
A piece of bark, motionless.
Soon it will be burnt to ashes
And the char will remain
The sacred remains
Remains in our hearts.
The pot holds precious thoughts
Of those living the pain
It hurts to think love had bid goodbye
To become a shadow in another place and time.
Every night he – a thief –
Smiles wickedly at me
Before I fall to temporary semblance
With even comfortable breathing
I have learnt to live with this soothsayer
Little doses from his pipe of lessons
Inch by inch he puts my body to test
Limited limitedness extends
Sleep guards me from death.
I live every day wondering
I pray I might see another day
This enigma shoots bullets at the heart
Surviving by chance over death
It’s a game of wheel
My vanquisher the hub rattles laughter
Like the blink of an eye he shall speed to me
And bury me in his arms
To place his icy hand on me
To claim me back from the lease.
I look bravely at his face
See his inviting grace
He fixes the time
I humbly jot it down
And submit to my Conqueror
Who levels life? The fair judge
The stage closes
Glad I lived few lessons
And I return back.
To the womb of larger dimensions
From where I sprang forth
Not a moment has he strayed the path
Living with me life is a momentary bliss
Death seals life with its permanence
Leaving love to reign over its secrets.