Pravat Kumar Padhy
Anamika
There is still a glare of light in the midnight star-filled sky. The river silently flows with murmuring muse alongside the hillock. The ‘Orphanage Home’ stands alone amongst the silent trees.
Children undergo morning Yoga under the open ground. The trainer recounts the number from the register. A new entrant has been added to the list barely a half day ago. I stand silently at the corner staring at the face of the tiny girl. Her eyes sparkle as if narrating something. She is asked her name for which there is no answer. Unaware of any self-identity, she might have moved from street to street, grown-up under the abandoned roof and open sky.
Fondly the teacher approaches her and calls her ‘Anamika.’ She feels suddenly as if something new is in her possession as others cheer her.
seldom I know
how to name it
I follow afar
the forest songbird
the muse leaves behind
Author’s Note:
The name Anamika (female) comes from the Sanskrit word which means “nameless.”
About the Author
Pravat Kumar Padhy’s poetry has been featured in many journals and anthologies. His seventh collection of verse, The Speaking Stone, will be released this year.
This piece is poignant and moving with a certain gentleness and beauty. It is a pleasure to read. Shakespeare’s ‘that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet’, comes to mind.
I really like the poetic prose of the first paragraph and the tanka’s link back to the ‘murmering muse.’
My only criticism is the final sentence in the prose. If you are ‘standing silently at a corner’ you would not be in a position to know how the child ‘feels suddenly’, although you would be able to see the change of expression on her face and hear the others cheer her.
Dear Liz,
Thank you for your insightful comment. Indeed, it inspired me a lot.