In the tranquil early hours of dawn,

When the prompt sunrise still seems to be some miles away, 

With the first and fresh sip of tea sinking in your throat 

I can see how nostalgia beams in your eyes 

How you wonder through the alleys and corridors that take you to the gate of your home

And oh, how your heartbeat stops to know that the once cluttered house is now where souls roam

I can see it vividly as your lashes flutter, how your mind recalls the sound of your mother’s bangles 

As she would shout at you for being soaked in the soggy mud and missed the dish that she cooked taking hours 

But you never felt the need to owe her an apology in fact were glad you missed the “plain boring meal”

Oh, I see how your eyes are cloudy wishing you had enjoyed every bite that now will never in front of your sight…

Your ears suddenly hear the distant sound of the leaves whispering 

And your body affixed, your spirit wonders to the tree next door that would bloom with pride 

Where you spend hours plucking the colorful leaves to decorate the gift for your sister 

How you would be the proudest person in earth when you heard her proudly boast to her friends the color lit present, she received

Then traces of early school assemblies ring in your mind, how you would stare when a new kid arrived to sit in your bench

And you come back in time to wonder where and in which foreign land the “new friend “could have been lost in…

You recall how the stolen sweets were always more delicious when shared with your grandmother…

Glimpses of her wrinkled face, her bony hands and warm hug penetrate through your nostalgic heart...

What a joy it was when your father would share his unique chronicles of history around the fire in the cold winter evenings

A chill seeps into your skin as you realize how much you miss the story and starry nights 

 Time seemed to hold infinity in your childhood soul, how did it slip so easily through your finger tips?

How did the innocence of yesterday become a desperate longing today?

How did the carefree years become such a careful memory today?

….and the sun has peeped from the balcony, the teacup now all emptied...

I see you slowly come back to the ticking of the alarm reminding of the early meeting today…

And you walk immersed in nostalgia, leaving behind the fragrant memories of long-gone childhood years….