Your love is like a frozen bird, a
feathered stone falling from the sky.
I wish it didn't die.
It should be flying, and soring, and
healing, against the warm blaze of
the afternoon sun--weaving and
diving through the coolness of the clouds.
But it's gone, and all it can do is
plummet and take a few more
birds out, on its way down.

My mom told me:
when you walk through sorrow,
do not fear the shadows
they are only the night’s way
of teaching you the stars.
you are not just a child of mine,
you are a child of the universe
born from fire,
shaped by silence,
destined for infinity.
And when I asked her,
“what is the meaning of all this?”
she smiled,
and said:
to live is to remember
that you are more than yourself,
that the cosmos speaks in your breath,
and every goodbye
is the seed of another hello.

Last time,
with lost grief,
I kept thinking of something,
that never found an answer.

The day I asked the universe:
Why? Why do you never let the world drive by itself—
without your rules, without its taste?
But silence whispered, unexplainably,
Or maybe.. I just didn’t hear.

I see people moaning,
“Oh God! Please call me to yourself!”
But you never call them.

I see people crying,
“Oh God! Please forgive my mistakes, spare my life!”
But I guess... they are your favourites.

From here, from there,
I wonder...
Why do they both ends the same way?
Both cries, only perspectives apart :
one wants to stay, while other wishes to leave.

I asked the universe again:
Why? Why do those who wish to live, eventually leaves...
while those who wish to leave, eventually stays?

Guess what? These questions covered up in the silence again..

It’s been months, unanswered...
Or maybe it’s just unexplainable.

Maybe the universe breathes in paradox.
And that itself is the answer.

—Parisha

In the wings of hope, I find my refuge and, in silence, I make my prayer, not always seeing the obstacles that life places before me. I am like a vibrant color that paints pictures which, with time, become moments for those who remain alive in memories, turning into parts of me. I am a gift from God, an eternal learner in the cycles of coming and going. Even as a warrior, I carry my fears; I cry, I smile, and I take with me a blend of pain, joy, and cherished memories. When opening the door, you may face challenges; the deceptive maze does not reveal itself at once. Between dreaming and doing, any attempt to move forward can be exhausting, and choosing to give up is to lose oneself in the shadows of darkness. I believe in the beauty of tomorrow and, even if there are no roses in the garden, I keep going. Life is built in the present, that is why I try now, even if barefoot. I am an example of overcoming who graduated from the school of life. Many times, the school meal was a powerful engine for my motivation and learning, a written story that, deep inside, only longs to be happy.

And Death entered her room at nightfall,
To fetch a beloved soul.
"Why are you crying, child?" Death asked the child.
"Mr. Snuffles won't wake up! I keep shaking him, yet he won't wake up!"
The child responded, cradling the small black cat in her arms.

"He has passed away, child. I'm here to take him to a place where he shall finally rest."
Death explained to the crying child.
"Where will you take him, mister? Why must you take him away?"
The child cried louder, seeming more desperate to keep her beloved cat to herself.

"It's time that Mr. Snuffles must go on and get rebirthed to his next life."
"With his short life in this world, he has already fulfilled his purpose, and that is to look after you as long as his little body allows."
Death further added.

"But you can't take him away, mister, not yet! I am still not grown, and I am still afraid to be alone in the dark!"
The child hugged her beloved cat tighter.
"There is light in the darkness, my child, and there is solace in being alone."
"Even if you wish to keep him longer, his body couldn't sustain his soul anymore. Another life awaits him at the other end."
Death squatted in front of the child, gently prying the cat from her.

"Why must you hold on to something that can no longer be there for you?"
Death asked yet another question.
"Because I still haven't made Mr. Snuffles happy! I haven't loved him enough yet. He can't go yet, please, mister!"
The child pleaded.

"Isn't it ironic that only in death humans find empathy, only in death your kind desperately asked for life when so many of you waste it away?"
Death thought to himself, seeming to wonder the irony of human emotions.

"Child, in this world, there's not a thing that remains permanent. Everything will eventually fade away, as well as the grief you are feeling in your little heart. One must know when to let go in order for the deceased and the living to move forward."
Death told the child softly.

"There will be comfort in grieving, there will be love with hatred, and most importantly, there will be life after death."
Death patted the child's head as he stood up, now cradling the black furball in his arms.

"Remember, child, death is not a curse nor is it a blessing. One must embrace this process in order to value the significance of life. Without death, life will be meaningless."
"Go forth, child, cry, grieve, be angry, yet remember that you must go forward in order to continue the existence of your beloved cat in your memories."
Death said as parting before he faded into the darkness of the night.

The child, stunned, collapsed on her bed, clutching Mr. Snuffles' collar near to her heaving chest.


- N.V. 🥀