Come, my love, gather me in your arms,
Before I leave this sanctuary, we hold in our palms.
The sanctuary, we call life.
Tasneem Hossain, a renowned multi-lingual poet from Bangladesh, shares her poem
Tasneem Hossain, majoring in English Language and Literature is a multi-lingual poet from Bangladesh. She writes poems in English, Urdu and Bengali. She is also a columnist, fiction and op-ed writer, translator, educator and trainer. Her impactful writings appear frequently in esteemed publications worldwide. She is author of three poetry books: ‘Grass in Green,’ ’The Pearl Necklace,’ ‘Floating Feathers’ and a book of articles ‘Split and Splice’. Four more books are underway. She worked as faculty of English Language in Chittagong University of Engineering and Technology. She is the director of a prominent human resource development organization Continuing Education Centre (Bangladesh) and Cansaz Services and Distribution LLC (Canada). She has 27 years of experience as a professional trainer. She runs an international poetry writing project and group named Life in Lyrics. A sportswoman, she also worked as newscaster, commentary reader and radio presenter in radio Bangladesh for 10 years and directed dramas like Shakespeare’s, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’.
Sanctuary
The world keeps moving in its pace;
We are all given a momentary space.
No one knows when the end will come;
When our lease will end, we succumb.
Feast of false dreams that we perceive,
Turns to ashes the shroud of happiness, we dream.
Every day, we come closer with every breath
Time of breaking this rhythmic heart.
Remembering the story of breaking apart;
River of rain brims the eyes, thinking of death.
Each breath we take is a beautiful song.
Flowing, dancing with every heartbeat along,
Treasure what our hands can hold; be strong.
Let others enjoy the rest my friend.
Wandering among the unknown faces until the end,
We will gently fade away, one day.
Come, my love, gather me in your arms,
Before I leave this sanctuary, we hold in our palms.
The sanctuary, we call life.
***
Everything Comes Back
A speck of dust in the vast sea,
Washed away by the huge tidal waves;
Stays buried under the ocean.
Centuries pass,
Stays there.
A silent spectator,
Waiting to return.
Again it rises from the womb.
Flows with the waves and reaches the shore.
Forgotten for some time,
But never in vain.
It emerges from the depths,
Shining brighter in the sunny waves.
Nothing gets lost,
Everything comes back.
In another name, another place;
Another form.
New existence.
***
Compassion
Heart is a geometrical meshed lyre.
Ignored and hurt, perceived as barbed wire.
Neglect and absence char a loving heart,
Never mends to its original form of art.
A heart that chars with neglect burns very fast.
Burns to ashes and dust at last.
Frozen hearts never melt,
Know that they only break.
Meaningless quarrels give rise to distance.
Unfold, untold, passive resistance.
Differences burn, sometimes, relations apart.
Ashes, dust and frozen broken hearts.
Rootless relationships slowly dissolve,
Cause only frustrations and discord.
A heart that cares and loves with no selfish desires,
Needs to be nurtured with a little love and care.
Life is meaningful,
With compassion beautiful.
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