Sangita Kalarickal
A Passion for Hunts
My six-year-old daughter and her two friends prepare for the better part of an hour. They distribute colorful plastic eggs uniformly around the backyard for toddlers to find. The air rings out with giggles that punctuate a discussion about the exquisitely embellished golden egg. Where do we hide it?
Suddenly silence shrouds the spring cold. Then, in wonderful defiance of all that is generally attributed to little girls, they stand in a circle and discuss quietly.
“Ohh. Do you think he was attacked?”
“Umm, na, doesn’t look like it.”
“So sad. Shall we have a proper funeral?”
“Ya. I’ll ask my dad to take care of him.”
They stand in somber silence as the dead rabbit is scooped onto a piece of cardboard and buried deep at the bottom of the garden. A collective sigh rises from the group as they pick up their bags of eggs.
“At least it wasn’t the Easter Bunny.”
komorebi
after dark thunder and
spring storms
we sift the clouds
for a silver lining
About the Author
Sangita Kalarickal’s work appears in several journals and anthologies. Her chapbook, Mamina, showcases long form and haikai poetry. A Pushcart and Touchstone Award nominee, she is the editor in chief of the journal Drifting-Sands-Haibun. Dr. Kalarickal lives in the midwest USA with her family and the fantasy characters she writes about.