Vidya Shankar

Appa Immortal

Image – pexels

The Book Thief had sat on my bookshelf
unperturbed
Waiting 
for me to pick it up

I did one day
not knowing that Death in those pages
would be the same Death
that would write my father’s final chapter
leaving me 
with pages unread
with pages unwritten

‘Is this yours?’ ‘Yes, Appa.’ ‘Why are you not reading this, then?’ Silence ‘Do you want to read it?’ Silence. My silence Then, 'But I am scared, Appa. I don't know what else I will lose.'
Silence
Then, a knowing smile ‘Well, we’d better read it then.’

So, I read it 
page after unread page
writing 
word after unwritten word 
of loss-gain, fear- trust
Death-Life-Love





Footnotes:
The lines in italics are an adaptation of an extract from the book, The Book Thief.
*Appa: father 

Vidya Shankar, a widely published poet and writer, an English Language teacher, a 'book' in the Human Library, author of two poetry books, and editor of four anthologies, loves experimenting with free verse writing techniques and exploring Japanese poetry forms. She finds meaning to her life through yoga and mandalas.