Come and look for me,
within the specks of dust on the roads
when they glisten under the sun,
where I walked for times longer than decades.
Find me, within the tears of my mother
as they fall over her soft skin,
making her tremble with my memories.
Find me, adjacent to the house of my friend
as she reads the news of my death-
another life lost, another hope gone.
Find me, in the echoes of silence
as the voices that were never heard come roaring in darkness.
Find me, in the spirit of youth that ignites flames
that touch the sky and write rebellion with crimson blood.
Find me, in the times- when death becomes more precious than life,
when dawn seems to be stuck in time.
But like a phoenix, I’ll rise.
I’ll rise when the flowers will bloom,
when the birds would usher you to wake up from sleep.
I’ll rise when meadows will sway with the air of victory,
when the city will be filled with the turns of a new day-
a new chapter waits to be unfolded.
I’ll rise when the caterpillars will become butterflies,
when their colorful wings will paint a rainbow
on the canvas of your eyes.
Remember me, when you will reach the shore finally-
soak in the new life,
and write my name in the wounded hearts that survived.
When your smile will write history, and
when the unknown montage will become your home,
utter my name with glory,
for my name in your tongue will be
my gravestone.
Ramisa Rubaba Rashed is a student at Rajuk Uttara Model College.