This poem was written by Dr. Gurpratap Singh, a young medical doctor who was discharged from the Army Medical Service due to his illness. It was sent to us by Professor Narendra N. Wig of Chandigarh, India.

Shadow
Locked up in self…
With no windows or doors.
An unreal cage of self-confinement;
Enmeshed in isolation. No words.
Cut down to size…
From lofty heights.
Passions flickering, never catching fire.
Chafed again and again—a fallen kite.
Thinking, imagining, conceiving
Circling round and round, all around.
A journey to unseen places
Each and every day.
They say you're shortcircuited
Neuronal wiring gone haywire,
'a chemical imbalance’ Dope-amen!
Just another case: bye.
Becoming a shadow of self,
tracing suspiciously
Changing dimensions through the day…
But ever glued on.
The rudiment of the game.
Bejeweled, sparkling gems
With the innocence of childhood,
The confusion of adolescence
The maturity of adults;
Jump high to break off the shadow.
Rising, rising
A phoenix through the ashes
The shadow is no more.
The reward is in the end.
This is the beginning….

Marriage and Family / “My parents are very supportive but we can’t tell any of our neighbors. It would hurt my sister’s chances of marriage.”

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