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The Retreat, Rhythm of the Soul
The Retreat
The sea retreats
Sparkling sand on the horizon
Intricate patterns, resplendent shells
Reflection of colors
All the people were there
Picking up shells and stones
Squealing in delight
At the oceans’ seemingly generosity
More land more play
More sand castles
Mellow blue tide
A placid sheet
They don’t see it coming
Foamy white gigantic curls
Hissing with a piercing sound
The avalanche of the wave
Ferocity and might
The sea flies over them
Drags them like prey
Every time they try to run
Transcending barriers
Sand blanketed by the sea
A cascade of brown and black
It now roars with fury
Oh wave, oh wave, this is not you
They cried, prayed, and wept
Submerged under nature’s wrath
Floating logs, fallen trees
Clinging on to dear life
Waves continue to pierce
Hissing sound, venomous plunge
And then it retreats
Traces of seaweed, black sand
Stones, bodies, and debris
Victims of the killer wave
Scars on the shore
Time and tide, sea regains its rhythm
Seasons, months, people are playing again
The sea retreats and roars, hissing sounds
Now merged with remnants of human echoes.
Rhythm of the soul
Tadum tum tana tadum tun tana Tadum tun tana
At first, I merely listen to the beats of the tabla
Until the sound syncs with my soul
My arms and legs sway
In a synchronized rhythm
My body curves and flexes
In a manner I haven’t known
It feels like a stranger to me
Almost like a shadow
Perhaps my alter ego
My fingers twist and grasp
Creating exotic shapes and patterns
Cham cham cham
The anklets on my feet
Soft and melodious
Like the first fall of rain
Then like the fury of a brewing storm
It drowns the sound of the drums
My lips curve into a smile
All I hear is cham cham cham
The anklets have triumphed.
Alas! My happiness is short lived
Dheem Dheem Tare, my guruji sings
Tadum dhun tana tadum dhun tana
The tabla overshadows my anklets
I stop, miss a beat, and freeze on the spot
That beat triggers a certain memory
Deeply embedded in my subconscious
Awakened by the tremors of that dark night.
Barely the flower had time to bloom
When that monster placed his hands
On the bud and plucked the petals
Muffled cries under his big hairy palms
Drowned by the sound of the tabla
Played in the background
I scratched his face, I cried for help
My voice just like the anklets
Cham cham cham
Drowned by the sound of the drumbeats
Tadun tum tana tadum tun tana tadum tun tana.
That nightmare left me with pain
Remorse, anger, and shame
How could the one I trust
Betray me in vain?
Not a soul I could tell
Who would believe me?
Not my mother, not my father
Afterall he was his brother,
I hid in the lurking shadows
Encroached in my shell
I wanted to free my soul
Of this turmoil and anguish
Oh God, what have I done
To suffer from these scars
Embedded in my veins?
Dance was my refuge
Music my healing balm
For a while I thought
I was lost in a sea of calm
The harmony, the rhythm, the swirls
Transported me to another world
I remember stamping my feet
As I moved to the beats
Tadun tum tana Tadun tun tana
To let the anklets echo and triumph
Drown that sound
Cham Cham Cham
It continues to haunt
Sometimes in my dreams
Sometimes in my recitals
All I want is to escape
From the shadows of the past
How can I when this sound reverberates?
Tadum tum tana tadum tun tana Tadum tun tana
This time, I vow to myself
To drown those demons
I twirl, stamp, and curl my fingers
Cham cham cham, Dheem Dheem Tare
Tadum tum tana tadum tun tana Tadum tun tana
All I hear is cham cham cham
I smile as the anklets have finally triumphed.
Bio:
Swetha Amit is currently pursuing her MFA at University of San Francisco. She has completed certified courses in creative nonfiction from Stanford continuing studies and the Tin House Winter Workshop 2022. As a writer, she has published her memoir titled 'A Turbulent Mind-My Journey to Ironman 70.3’ and in a few anthologies. She has upcoming pieces in Gastropoda Lit Magazine and has secured admission into the Kenyon Review Writers’ workshop in summer.