Saturday 25 April 2015

Quake

Pashupatinath Temple, Nepal

With a reeling head

We all throng

On the school compound

“Will there be another quake Ma’m?”

Asks a little angel

In a quaking voice

“What if there is?”

Quips another

Sounding like a rock

Or like the Temple of Pashupatinath

Without a scratch

Still standing tall

In the foothills

Of the Himalayas

Where Mount Everest

Is mourning deaths*

                     

*In the base camp of Mount Everest 18 mountaineers were killed in yesterday’s earthquake.

                      


Posted for Poetry Pantry @ PoetsUnited

36 comments:

  1. Timely words Sumana... Devastating news from Nepal. Thinking of all those people enduring the trauma of the situation there.

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  2. So many dead in that disaster. A very timely reminder.. And yet the temples stand.

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  3. Regardless of mankind the earth has a mind of its own and shakes where it will. Perhaps after years of experience it was worked out where the fault lines were all those years ago to save the temple for so long.

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  4. so tough... i've seen it in the news yesterday and was so shocked... what a disaster for the people that live there

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  5. I was on the fifth floor of my institute and everything was swaying.

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  6. It was very scary.Nepal had to bear the brunt.Today there was another one.

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  7. This is so sad... you have captured the essence of the pain that must be felt at the loss of loved ones in Nepal...!

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  8. It is such a sad thing to have succumbed not to the risks of the climb but rather to an unexpected happening. It is a pity. Thanks for highlighting it Sumana!

    Hank

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  9. The news coming from your part of the world is so sad. I hope you all stay safe and your worried students can envisage the coming days with less fear.

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  10. Very frightening, Sumana. How hard it must have been to comfort your worried students! I hadn't heard of this temple that still stood tall. Sometimes unexpected miracles happen. So sad for the loss of life, and more aftershocks occurring today!

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  11. so sad... it's been on the news... you captured some of the drama

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  12. These natural disasters are so scary because they stomp down in the middle of our everyday lives and change them forever....I saw the news about the climbers and their guides...so very sad when life is gone in a flash.

    You captured the pain and loss of those who are living this scary hell right now.

    Donna@LivingFromHappiness

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  13. just horrible how it hits and leaves behind destruction and death.. and the fear that eats..

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  14. I like your closing lines, that nature, in the form of Mount Everest, also mourns the deaths of those who were caught up in the disaster.

    Elizabeth

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  15. The picture you've painted of children who can't understand the magnitude of the loss (or of people so far away that they are detached) is so devastating... mostly because it's true.

    I hope the souls that perished are at rest, and that their families find some comfort.

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  16. the loss of life and destruction of ancient structures is devastating. of course, the lives are what matter most, but it is also sad when places which have survived generations are ruined. happy to hear not all were destroyed.

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  17. The worst effects of these natural disasters are linked to deforestation and unsustainable land management. Hope human beings stop exploiting mother nature!! As usual..great command till the end, Sumana :)

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  18. Such a tragedy deserves more than a moment of silence. It is good to see the world mobilizing in a positive way to provide assistance. I have a former student of mine living in Katmandu and I am so worried about her safety.

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  19. I like the perspective you have chosen here...it makes it all the more relatable and powerful

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  20. Always radiance to be found here Sumana - even in your description of this recent tragedy... With Best Wishes Scott

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  21. Chilling. A great tragedy.

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  22. Be safe Sumana, especially be more careful with the aftershocks. This news kind of reminded me of Japan.

    Very sad poem - no one can really predict mother nature. As for the mountaineers, earth gave them a cold embrace. :(

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  23. A great piece and tribute.
    ZQ

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  24. These tragedies are just heartrending. Sadly, children seem to take the brunt in all adversity - natural and man made.

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  25. 'Where Mount Everest Is mourning deaths' speaks of the monumental size of the tragedy...

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  26. Cruel fate, hit-and-miss cruelty--thus we help ourselves survive uncertainty and prepare for the tragedy of mortality. Brilliant. I hope you still stand, my friend.

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  27. Beautifully done. I did a haiku on the earthquake at Carpe Diem and was saddened no-one else saw fit to pat homage. This poem stands in tribute. As does the ensitivity shown

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  28. How frightening this must have been. My thoughts are with all affected by the quake. Thank you for your words Sumana.
    Anna

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  29. The terror of a quake and the random points of death and the untouched. You have written about them well.

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  30. Yes, nature can bring sorrow!

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  31. Nature does what it was meant to do. The sorrow will be heavy for many who've lost so much. Lovely writing though, Sumana.

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  32. It is unfathomable to me how the landscape has been altered so mightily...how temples that have been there for centuries are now rubble and a nation has lost not only thousands of lives but history that cannot be replaced. So very tragic.

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  33. You instatantly connect with the world
    Great job done here for those departed souls!

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  34. Sumana,

    Such a sad and devastating disaster, which has claimed so many lives. Thousands of souls lost in an instance of natural movement and taken by surprise. Praying for the well-being of those poor people who need, prayers, aid and worldly help..

    Eileen

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  35. It is so devastating, Sumana. Beautiful writing.

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  36. May God, give the strength to cope with these irrepairable losses. Let the souls rest in peace.The words touched the right chords!

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