Focus On The Lotus by Vivek Sharma

Focus on the lotus
not on the mud,
the nectar is within.

Wait out this exile.
A fog hides the path,
yet at each step
the fog vanishes.

From rain to river,
from silt to salt,
from salt to the sky,
tireless, ageless,
trust its rhythm,
it wakes your thirst,
it slakes your thirst,
trust its wisdom.

You are the mud,
focus on the lotus,
the nectar is within.

Indian Literature | Indian Review Author | Vivek Sharma‘s first book of verse The Saga of a Crumpled Piece of Paper (Writers Workshop, Calcutta, 2009) was shortlisted for Muse India Young Writer Award 2011. His work in English appears in Atlanta Review, Bateau, Poetry, The Cortland Review, Muse India, Reading Hour among others while his Hindi articles and verses appear in Divya Himachal (Hindi newspaper, India), Himachal Mitra and Argala. Vivek grew up in Himachal Pradesh (Himalayas, India), and moved to the United States in 2001. Vivek is a Pushcart nominated poet, is published as a scientist and he lives and teaches in Chicago.