Winter Hearth: A Father's Joy (Sonnet Sequence) Poem by Dipankar Sadhukhan

Sonnet I - A Winter Evening's Fatherly Joy

Upon the bed the children leap and spin,
While winter's hush lies silver on the floor.
Their laughter shines like sun through glassy tin,
And gilds the shadows creeping at the door.

The boy's small feet drum rhythms sharp and bright,
His sister twirls, a comet through the room.
Their play ignites the corners with delight,
Each glance a spark that turns the dark to bloom.

Yet now, though mother treads beyond the gate,
The father feels a deeper, steadier flame.
No fleeting absence dims what hearts create;
Their trust, their love, confirms his quiet claim.

Thus in these hours, ephemeral yet true,
A world is born, warmed by his tender view.

Sonnet II - The Children's Dance

Their laughter forms a music soft and clear,
The room a stage where tiny feet perform.
Each twirl and leap defies the winter's fear,
Their joy a fire that keeps the hearth warm.

The boy, a drum, commands the floor with glee,
His sister arcs through air like morning light.
Their rhythm flows, unbroken, wild, and free,
And paints the walls with warmth against the night.

Yet father watches, heart attuned and still,
He feels the magic pulse through every limb.
Though fleeting, every moment seems to fill
His soul with love, no winter can grow dim.

In dancing shadows, time itself suspends,
And childhood's music never truly ends.

Sonnet III - Shadows on the Floor

The shadows stretch as daylight slips away,
Their shapes like whispered echoes on the floor.
The children chase them in their playful fray,
Yet darkness presses softly at the door.

The boy's small hands grasp at the fleeing light,
His sister twirls beneath the fading glow.
The room becomes a theater of the night,
Where fleeting forms and dreams together grow.

But father sees beyond the shifting shade,
A permanence beneath the playful scene.
Though day departs, the love that they have made
Endures beyond the walls, unseen, serene.

And in that winter hush, he understands
The gentle kingdom resting in his hands.

Sonnet IV - The Silent Hearth

The hearth lies dim, yet warmth seeps through the air,
A whisper of the fire long since spent.
The children pause and stare with raptured care,
Their tiny eyes with quiet wonder bent.

He hears the creak of floorboards, soft and low,
The sighs of wind that brush the windowpane.
Each sound a note, a story in the glow,
A tender rhythm calling home again.

Yet father senses something deeper still,
The silent pulse that binds the house as one.
Though winter grips the world beyond the sill,
Within these walls, all shadows are undone.

Here, love and life, in whispered currents, flow,
A secret flame that only fathers know.

Sonnet V - Winter's Breath

Outside, the bitter winds of winter sweep,
Yet here, the room holds warmth against the storm.
The children laugh, the world beyond seems deep,
Their smiles a haven, safe and soft and warm.

He feels the frost against the pane's cold face,
And yet his heart is full of summer light.
No winter chill can steal this sacred space,
Where love and laughter banish fear of night.

But in the pause, he knows the time will pass,
The cold will come, the children will grow tall.
Still, fleeting joy can rise above the glass,
And in this room, their kingdom crowns them all.

A father's heart defies the winter's might,
To guard the warmth that makes the dark seem bright.

Sonnet VI - The Little Hands

The little hands reach up to touch his own,
Soft fingers tracing patterns on his face