Mother On Fire, I am Thy Daughter- A Poem

Mother, oh Mother,

Mother, it is me-

Your daughter, the one you loved covered in dirt,

With soil in her fingertips-

Mother, oh Mother!

What can I do for thee?

All my efforts feel futile, as do those of my peers-

Despite our successes and losses,

Your skin burns again tonight-

The cost of us moving forward,

On your bones, it imprints-

Oh Mother, Mother, Mother,

How do I help thee?

Wrapped in my fears and life-

Yet, I try,

As much as I healthily can, I be-

Oh Mother, mother, Mother,

Some of us must burn your bones,

Those that you gifted us with-

But Mother, trust you me,

Many of us are working-

Working to find another path to progress,

While trying to reduce the oil to the flames

Oh Mother, we are looking for a path forward,

Where we can all live,

Those cacked with dirt, and those without-

Yet, not a morsel sent to waste,

Eaten, shared, donated, composted, enzymed,

Not a scrap thrown away,

Dresses new and old, worn and re-worn,

Re-styled, repaired, re-dyed, re-cycled, re-used, re-made

Your wisdom guides us mother,

The path forward is not a line-

But a loop,

Where what seems like waste, is just

Treasure waiting to be found

By the swan who knows how to pick the pearls,

An Earth-wisdom society.

Even if we need to ensure that our path ain’t paved to mistakes further.

Oh Mother, what a beautiful world you gift to me

In our dreams, fragments we see,

Yet, we have to fully envision it

To make it a reality,

Green and bold, brown and gold,

An Earth-Wisdom Society,

Courtesy of you and them and me,

Oh Mother!

Author’s Note: Hope you enjoyed this, and it reminded you that collective action and resilient communities are a must for what is likely ahead of us. As a signboard in Pune says, mitigate what you can and adapt to what you can’t mitigate. 2025 has been a year that saw the no-buy trend carrying on from 2024’s underconsumption core, and as the year nears its end, while we hear news like the sad announcement of us likely crossing the first global tipping point, we also remind ourselves that there was good news on the climate front, and every impactful action on the part of us, every support for pro-climate policies that we give our leaders, is still one forward in repairing this world for the generations and our selves ahead. Thank you for being here. You can read my works (with sporadic updates) without paywalls on Muses_Saga or buy e-books from our store. For physical books, please place an order at roongta.bw.anjali@gmail.com