Sacrifice

I noticed her in a wedding reception
beautiful she looked but filled with tension.
Yet a helping hand she offered to many
I felt, if only her, my brother could marry.

Approaching her with this proposal
saddened I felt by her refusal
Her better half she had already found
and to him only her life was bound.

A feel of gloominess engulfed me
I turned to leave but for an ailing lady
Smiling sadly she bade me to sit beside her
Saying “That girl is the sole bread winner.”

“An ailing mother and a wastrel father
education to take care for her sister and brother
So whenever the topic of marriage arise
she makes an escape with these lies.”

“Do you know her or her family?” I inquired
Seeing tears trickling, my question I regretted.
“It is not just knowing her,” came the reply
“I happen to be her mother,” so saying she bid goodbye.

Let go

A bird in hand is worth two in the bush
So goes the saying that all of us have heard
But also true is the fact that trying to possess it
Leads to disappointment and unhappiness.

Wriggling for freedom when held tightly
bearing the scar of its fight for freedom
or it gets choked and suffocated
all we are left with is its lifeless body.

So also is relationship in one's life
Assuming we are showering love
We try to possess and hold too tightly
Unaware that it creates unbearable pain.

An act of strangulation is what one feels
When being held in other's grip
So much so that they flee and seek freedom
Or the relationship undergoes painful death.

I was trying to hold steadfast to her
sort of insecure she might slip away.
I realized I was only stifling her.
I need to give her the breathing space.