I Am But A Twig Poem by Sunita Ganapathy

I am but a twig,
Floating in a stream
I once was aloft,
A very mighty tree
Part of a branch, was I
Holding out flowers sweet
We looked down below, at
Our reflections in the cobbled stream
Mighty pleased were we
As people stopped to admire
Flower peckers and bees vied with each other
For the taste of the wondrous nectar.

But anon a flower did fall,
Into the stream below
We glanced anxiously into the stream,
No, no, nothing to worry about yet
We still looked wonderful,
So we admired ourselves
Our joy too short lived. Alas!
My heart breaks as I think about it
More fell! More fell!
I looked around
Mounds and mounds lay around us
And in the stream below

And now a barren branch, I stood
Looking down at my reflection
Alone, bereft without my flowers
A bare stump, A bare stump,
Was I _ _ _ _ _ _
Now, no one stood to admire
I looked down into the stream
There wasn't much to admire there
Now, was there?
My pretty flowers had fallen in the stream
The wind blew hard and fast and carried them away
Oh Lord! What befalls me as I crack and fall in too

The ice cold water hits me hard
I shiver as it carries me
Oh! Mercy Dear Lord. Oh! Mercy!
Cry I, as I am carried against my will
Unwilled I am carried by the current
Behold, there are some rocks, I see
Perhaps! Perhaps!
I try to lodge myself amongst them
To stop being carried further
A mere respite do I get
The current flows fast and dashes me
Against them. Asunder I float again

The rain has stopped a while now
The current flow has eased
I floated slowly down the stream,
Now at ease _ _ _ _ _ _
The sun now warmed me up
As I floated not knowing where
A little bird perched on me
And stared into the waters beneath
The little bird stayed a while and flew
I made other friends as I floated down
Another bird, Another twig, Another fish
As I floated on the stream