Live and Let Live

a poem by Bhavna Pant

When I stepped into that dreary lane,
And trampled upon the resting layers
settled peacefully, undisturbed by the rain,
breaking the stillness of the gloomy surroundings
I heard a forlorn, suppressed wail,
At that moment I looked at the unbounded sky,
With all its stars repeating the same cry,
‘Let them rest in peace!’ they said,
I stood there wondering, gazing at the road ahead,
Piled up with dry leaves neither alive nor dead,
Discarded and forgotten, yet contented,
My heart told me, let them live on till they are swallowed by the earth.
Then the rain poured and poured
one by one as the drops fell on the ground to be soaked,
I saw the water run down leaving them untouched,
loud and clear was the message,
they aren’t touched by the droplets of the mighty clouds,
mother nature has gifted them a protective shroud,
you are no one to disturb their tranquility,
my feet turned back, I counted my steps back one by one
returned enlightened, by the surviving lonesome.