First published on: https://pentoprint.org/monday-moments-marching-ever-onwards/

A poem by Palak Tewary. She tells us:

The poetry format is Glosa/Glose, which is a Spanish form that quotes four lines (a quatrain) of poetry from another poet. The poem I chose was I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud by William Wordsworth and the four lines (which are the last lines of my four stanzas) are:

They flash upon that inward eye
Which is the bliss of solitude;
And then my heart with pleasure fills,
And dances with the daffodils.

This poem reflects upon how one can attain peace and happiness through finding joy within oneself. You don’t have to wait for a specific time or place – you can start anytime, anywhere.

In the centre of my home,
I find there is an immense blue,
that fills with my essence with glee
as the voices of the open terrain
echo against the blank walls,
telling yarns, they had seen in awry
footsteps of travellers that walked
through the same trail, before me;
the reflections, as clear as the sky,
they flash upon that inward eye.

The air was as pure as the love
of a mother for her child and
the water that cascaded from
the peak as translucent as the
spirit of a being that had attained
nirvana. As the journey renewed
inside the mind space, I reached
Elysium, where I was the lone
and distinct victor, an attitude
which is the bliss of solitude.

Within the barriers of my confined
chair, where I only have the recall
of expanse pieces of heavens, the
strong arms of the vast mountains
cradle me in my despair, and when
I close my eyes, I can feel the chills
of the cool ether against my hot skin,
calming my unease in our man-made
cage, with phenomenal unseen skills
and then my heart, with pleasure, fills.

As I step into the garden, for
my piece of land under the
clouds, I find that it is within
my grasp, no matter where I am
to bring the mountains to me.
I call to the protector of the hills
and the seas and carry myself
into me to the locale I was the
happiest and my glum soul stills
and dances with the daffodils.

© Palak Tewary, 2021

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