Words Not Spoken is a potpourri of poems written over a considerable stretch of time. Some poems go back as far as 1997. I decided to include them in this collection, amidst the other contemporary poems because I could still relate to them emotionally. Besides, this being my first published collection, I did not want to miss any step of my poetic journey.
The poems represent my perceptions of life with all its highs and lows, troughs and crests... They trace experiences of loss and grief, pride and joy, betrayal and pain. Some express my awareness of the injustices I see around me but mostly they centre around the intensely peculiar dimensions of womanhood - its sentimental treasures and curious travails.
Over the years I have discovered that pain has a penumbra of numbness attached to it. And that sooner or later, we choose this numbness to the acuteness. It is this invisible fine shift towards a state of stillness that inspires me to write. Endurance, in any form, is at the core of my writing.
I hope these poems will strike a chord inside every reader in a way that will forge a new bond between us. Through my written words I hope to strike with the readers a connection more real than artificial, more deep than shallow and more at the level of heart than at the mind. I entrust these verses the task of carrying the readers to the edge of life and beyond because that is where our truest experiences bear meaning. That is where it all happens.
I dedicate this book to my husband who taught me single-minded commitment in every pursuit, to my father who showed that silence of mind brings incredible fortitude in character, to my son whose forbearance shines against all odds, to Ma-Papa-Didi who epitomise simplicity and genuine love.
Above all, I dedicate this book to my mother, who is no more. She loved me like no one else. The title poem in this collection has been written for her.
Last but not least, this book reaches out to the special people in my life, who taught me deeper meanings and deeper thirsts.
They say that life is all about notching extraordinary moments in ordinary days. A life spent in collecting such moments is a life worth lived. I wish all my readers scores of such moments. I wish them immense joy and yes, I wish them reading pleasure too!
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