Poet’s Note:
My parents: When was the last time you wrote a poem?
Me: Umm… *proceeds to scroll. And scroll. And scroll. And scroll.* Oh yes, umm, December 1st 2021?

I’m so sorry for not posting anything earlier. It’s been forever, I know. I’ll try to be more active now 🙂 Anyway, Happy Republic Day! This poem is dedicated to all the people who gave their lives to give us a better life all those years ago, and we should never let their memory die.

The soil we walk on, unchained and free, had once been painted red with enmity.
Because while we think of war safely as a memory, it had once been a dreadful reality.

The blood of the past is now our own, the only difference is the cost.
For then it was worth lesser than stone, more the gain when more was lost.

The women and men whose blood spilled to give rise to us,
Thought their sacrifice would be of value if it shaped a country with love.
Their actions remained steadfast until death’s final touch,
Because although they would breathe no more, they knew they’d done their part.

I am proud to say we’ll do it again, if ever comes such a day.
Because even though those times have passed, it is the past that paves the future’s way.
Gone is the time of bloodshed and battle, but their heroes live till date.
It is the dead who stay alive forever, because they are the reason we get to celebrate.