Seshnie Poem by Dr Deena Padayachee

To Seshnie Padayachee on turning 18.
By Deena Padayachee

God must be wonderful
If you could have come from Him.

You crawled onto my chest,
Seshnie,
Your little 3 year old fingers brushed aside the newspaper I was trying to read.
Your smiling, cherubic face, full of innocent affection, peered happily at me.
You held my face in your little hands,
Your lips covered my face with kisses,
And everything about you
Radiated a timeless, all encompassing love,
A love daughters reserve especially for their fathers.

In your eyes and your thoughts,
I see glimpses of my father's wisdom,
In your voice I see traces of my mother's voice,
In your caring and compassion I see my father's love,
In your behaviour,
I see the humanity of my father's heart.

In your writing and your perseverance,
In your sense of justice,
Your energy and your passion,
I see shards of my own essence.

Thank you, darling daughter,
Your creation was one of the most incandescent illuminations
of my existence.
I will always love you,
Even when you are far away,
Even when your eyes are turned towards another morning,
And I have become a memory.

It is exhilarating for me to know
that I am part of the melanin in your skin,
the haem in your blood,
the depth of your vision,
the insight in your mind,
the tears in your eyes,
the throb of your heart,
the laughter in your Spirit.

You came to us from God,
And when I return to God,
I pray that I might leave an aroma of exquisite memories with you,
My first begotten child,
now a promising, beautiful young lady
On the threshold of a wonderful life.

From your Father.
May 2009