The Last Meeting (To My Mother Annamma Varghese) Poem by Alexander Raju

It was my last meeting with my mother,
She was in the intensive care unit
Of the hospital; she beckoned to me
And said, "Dear son, come, sit near and listen! "

"In the balance sheet of my life's account,
Are there a few more days left just to spend,
That I can crush the husks of my thoughts
And spin the fibre-coir of history?

"These last moments are to dole out advice,
A duty every parent should follow,
On how I made my life worthy of living;
Read, learn and dream, be creative and unbiased.

"Share your experience, not wealth, with your kids,
Teach them to co-operate and not to compete,
To be kind and develop true compassion
And don't insult others but laugh at yourself!

"Trust in God, the acme of human life,
God the Almighty and omnipresent,
The omniscient and the omnipotent,
Unlike those who think God an entity
Like us, mere human representations,
Incarnations, messengers or sons even!

"Remember, in helplessness God helps us,
He's an active friend in our loneliness;
He consoles us in his complete absence,
He is Fate, changeless like our changeless fate,
He's the protector, try not his protection,
Till breathe the last to enter our last sleep."

I didn't get a chance to reply, for tears
Blurred my vision and voice choked my throat;
Her skeleton fingers gripped mine,
I thousand things I wished to tell her
The nurse said, "Leave the room, please; your time's up",
I left her sight to hear she breathed her last!