An evocative poem, a prayer, about a son and mother, in different ICUs, on his birthday, by Bushra, exclusively for Different Truths.

The mid of April has always been
a very special day in our lives,
a day we celebrate  your birthday, Brother

But as you lie alone in your ward of isolation
fighting that monster which has invaded our lives
my heart cries out for you
as I wonder what you must be going through,
what thoughts  assail you
as you struggle to breathe easy,
to  cling onto precious life,
five and a half decades after this life was infused into you
as you formed into a beautiful baby
In our mother’s womb

And Mother, dear Mother
I know how you always yearn to spend
this happy day each year with your son
And how devastated  you were when he was rushed
to Intensive Care last week
And  later when you, yourself, had to be rushed to hospital
we opted to  select the hospital your son was admitted to
knowing that it would comfort him if  you were close by,
as you silently whisper duas and blow them his way

Five and a half decades back,  dear  Brother
 you and our mother  were in hospital together,
and you gurgled cheerfully as she embraced you with joy
…celebrating new life
Five and a half decades  later, dear Brother
 you and our mother are in hospital again, together,
 …different floors, different ICU’s
A very grim scenario this time…

And as we desperately pray for your health and life
and for several thousands of those in similar circumstances
We wish that no more misfortune befall you ever
We wish that your path is strewn with blessings from above
We wish that no matter how long the night
may the sun now rise bright and shining
Our hearts are steadfast in our faith
for does not every dark cloud have a silver lining!

Five and a half decades ago, dear Mother
Three little girls waited excitedly for you to return
Carrying your precious bundle of joy
all swathed in blue…

Five and a half decades later, dear Mother
three sisters wait anxiously for you to return
with our brother,
discarding your hospital blues
all well and smiling…

Come soon, home awaits you!
Come soon, your family awaits you!

Visual by Different Truths

Bushra Alvi Razzack

Bushra Alvi Razzack, Founder of Delhi by Verse, loves weaving words, emotions and opinions while creating rhythm and imagery to make sense. Apart from being therapeutic, writing poems is her way of storing memories and recording events. Her articles on culture and society have been widely published. She has also translated short stories from Urdu and Hindi into English. She is the Editor of multilingual anthology, Dilliwali: Celebrating the Woman of Delhi through Poetry.

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