In the safety of your homes, don’t cower;

In the darkest of times, stand out and glow.

Let the world witness your indomitable power.

Strive to slay all of your foes.

Walk tall and proud in the light.

The darkness would want to engulf you;

To lock away, in an eternal night;

Where you would never experience the life you were due.

I have always walked with a spotlight,

In the darkest of places;

Where the shadows threaten to overwhelm my might,

To raze to the ground with no discernible traces.

I do not race to my destination.

For none knows what awaits me at the end.

But I know my journey lays the foundation;

To rid the world of desolation, to emend.

I hear the wails and bawls of man;

The emptiness in their eyes.

To observe at present is my plan;

Even as I flinch when I hear the distant cries.

I must walk the last mile;

To where I would acquire the power,

The power to turn around and walk back with a smile,

And bestow those stuck in deaths’ shadow with flowers.

You made it, I would tell them;

You have endured the worst of your existence.

You have taken mortal risks and emerged from mayhem;

You are now freed for all agony, for your one remarkable trait;

You remained resilient.

About the Poet

Gauri Pramil Menon is an avid reader, having read over 900 novels since she was 10 years old. She can weave words to entrap any audience and can pen down dagger-sharp words of poetry. She is passionate about literature and sees beauty in history. Gauri is an excellent debater, having delegated and chaired more than 220 conferences. She challenged herself by reading more advanced books for her age and had already written a myriad of stories by the time she was 12 years old. Today, Gauri has an online blog, having published quite several articles and poems. She developed a curious interest in mythologies, and she finds it to be a very creative take on various cultures. She has several articles published in well-known magazines dedicated to the topic.