A SECOND CHANCE

The tree it grows reaching for the sky

Branches aspire spreading far and wide

Roots reach under seeking nourishment nigh

Delving deep, crawling through rock and soil

Growth is a life-long adventure 

Like the thirst of an unquenched desire

Through unchartered paths and unseen lanes

An undying search for the deep dark unknown

An exhilarating escapade of high dose adrenalin

Through hills and vales of untrodden trails

An eternal quest for an unknown 

A seeking for some sustaining solace

The river she meanders through vales and hills

Forging new banks, scurrying in haste

Taking with her gravel, loam and leaves and twig

Seeking, Surging, Striving in eternal exploration

Meeting strange friends, colluding with sister streams

She charters her journey seeking the sea so vast

Each day goes by, millions of moments

Minutes of musings, Hours of solitude

But suddenly tiny little seconds, bring a sea of change

Setting in motion a flurry of furtive fury

Flooding the mind to seek new pathways

Daring to dream of a magical future

Leaving us seeking a fresh new path

Telling us it isn’t enough to just live in the moment

Prodding us on to make each second matter

Sending us forth on a search of a different nature

Making us dwell on thoughts that set us aflutter

Asking us to turn them into a life that’s better

Maybe today is the day to make a point

For me to give voice to my every thought

To put down every word that deserves a song

To break out in tune to the verse that resounds

To express my innermost musings

And soar high and live every dream, every fancy

But I think it’s not just my inner being talking

It’s something else that is fuelling this transition

Watching my father going through a second childhood

Seeing him live in a daze of innocent boyhood

He who had lived a life so rich with adventure

Today in a daze and a forgotten maze of memories

What am I waiting for, who am I awaiting

I need to venture forth and live every dream

Gone is the time searching for the right moment

I need to embrace the day and set forth in abandon

No regrets, no tears, no repentance

Now is the time to make new memories

To start living a life with a no holds bar attitude

To leave every care and embark on adventures

To make sure that I do not have regrets

To ensure that I’ll live every hour and moment

Being snug in the embrace of excitement

Filling my days with fun and enjoyment

Appa don’t despair, keep smiling in elation

I will carry forth your zest for new immersions

Making my life a journey of new engagements

Travelling the seven seas seeking new frontiers

Voyaging on waves to make new memories

To be left suspended in a cloud of dreams to live on in life forever.

-Lakshmi Shankar

Meet the Author:

A mother, musician, teacher, performer, poet, writer and baker. Lakshmi shankar is a vivacious and multi-faceted person. She began her career as a cub writer in advertising, growing to become a creative director and also setting up her own ad agency. After marriage and mother-hood she went on to teaching in a Waldorf school. She found herself writing songs as most of the verses were about snowflakes and spring and her grade one children just did not relate to them. “Under the Poetree” is this collection of songs in English, Hindi and Tamil about nature, festivals and seasons. This audio e- book encourages parents to sing along with their children. When she’s not singing and teaching music she bakes under her brand “Chakkibakes” using millets and jaggery. She lives with her husband and two children in Hyderabad and is also working on her next novel which is a memoir on food memories, exploring stories and recipes.