Two Poems on Tomorrow - Who Has Ever Seen Tomorrow .... ??!! And Tomorrow's Today

.... Tomorrow Will Be Today, Tomorrow, Who has ever seen Tomorrow .... ??!! .... .... Now, on hand, Ever slipping .... Make the most of it, To Make Tomorrow's Today Blest and Lit.

Who Has Ever Seen Tomorrow .... ??!!

Yesterday was tomorrow

The day before,

Today was tomorrow,

Yesterday,

Tomorrow will be today,

Tomorrow,

Who has ever seen

Tomorrow .... ??!!

Who has ever seen

Tomorrow .... ??!!

- Vanita Thakkar (23-03-2021)

Tomorrow's Today

The string of Time

Rolls on and on,

Gone, ever gone,

Coming, ever coming,

Now, on hand,

Ever slipping ....

Make the most of it,

To make

Tomorrow's Today

Blest and Lit.

- Vanita Thakkar (23-03-2021)

Reflections ....

Tomorrow is a dream, an aspiration, an uncertainty - that arouses many feelings including, hope, curiosity, inspiration, apprehension and so on. It is on the farther side of the flow of Time, always presenting itself as the present and moving on to become past .... What we have on hand is today - now - the present .... And a lo...ng trail of unchangeable past that keeps adding up every moment also has to be handled by learning, enjoying and obtaining strength and inspiration from the memories, letting go and moving ahead ....

- Vanita Thakkar (25-03-2021)

This is in response to the word prompt challenge by fellow author and poetess Brenda Arledge on Tomorrow ....

This word prompt - Tomorrow - also reminds of a very famous Doha by the great Saint Kabir on the importance of overcoming the usual, mundane laziness of postponing important tasks to the morrow ....

Kaal Kare So Aaj Kar, Aaj Kare So Ab,

Pal Mein Paralay Hoegee, Bahuree Karegaa Kab.

Meaning :

Better do (the work) today than tomorrow, better do (the work) now than today.

Destruction / Doom takes just a moment to occur, when will you accomplish (your work) ?

About Doha ....

Doha is a very old "verse-format" of Indian poetry. It is an independent verse, a couplet, the meaning of which is complete in itself, that consists of rhyming couplets made up of twenty-four syllables each, composed in Mātrika metre.

Links to some Doha Songs available online ....

Kabir Amritvaanee - Some Popular Doha of Sant Kabir - The Doha Kaal Kare So Aaj Kar .... starts at 05:53 minutes in this compilation (just for information)

Doha from the Ramayana by Sant Tulsidasji - absolutely beautiful, divine music.

From HubPages .... Published on 25th March, 2021

The Shadow - A Poem

 

Shadows are a part of our existence. They nurture us, teach us and stay with us till we last, like past ....

The Shadow

We march into the future,

Venturing through the present,

Leaving behind everything on the way –

Moment after moment, day after day.

All the time during this journey,

We are ensued by the Shadow of Past.

Step by step, as we move ahead,

It remains with us, till we last.

- Vanita Thakkar (10.07.1988)

This is another old poem of mine. I wrote it as a higher secondary student, contemplating on the flow of time. Future moves from present to past. What we are and what we do in the present becomes past and leads us to future.

I had written two poems on similar lines of thoughts much later, on HubPages, inspired by Brenda Arledge's word prompt - Tomorrow. The link to those poems is ....

https://vanitathakkar.blogspot.com/2026/02/blog-post.html

Hope - Leads to Success

 

"Hope is the sweet child of Faith and Forgiveness that breathes Life into life."

-  Vanita Thakkar (29-03-2021)

How Did Squirrels Get Stripes On Their Back? : A Poem

Sincere efforts never go in vain. This is a poem which reaffirms this conviction, narrating a myth from the Raamaayana, in which the sincere, but trivial-looking efforts of a little squirrel are appreciated by Shree Raama during the construction of the bridge - Raama-Setu - to Lanka.

How Did Squirrels Get Stripes On Their Back?

The vast, roaring ocean

Posed an incredible task on

Sugreeva’s army, toiling, tenacious;

Huge, heavy rocks, mountainous,

Inscribed with “Raama”, the holy name, redeemer,

On the dancing waves, lay together,

Forming the bridge, unbelievable,

Across the ocean, unfathomable,

Beyond the cape of Indian peninsula,

To Raavana’s golden kingdom, Lanka ….

Time was too less,

The task, enormous,

Hurrying past the trail,

Someone spotted a squirrel,

Rolling vigorously on the sand,

Gathering sand on its fluffy back,

Filling hands with a pebble or two,

As much as could be carried through,

And then racing to the bridge,

To empty the carried loads on it.

“What’s going on, little one ?

Why are you pacing along ?”

“Trying to lend a helping hand,

In this titanic task, my friend !!”

“Oh really ??!!” Jested the soldier,

And the ensuing wave of laughter,

Caught Shree Raama’s caring ears.

He came to see the tiniest of troopers.

He lifted the tiny critter, tenderly,

The little soldier said, shyly,

“I too, wanted to contribute ….”

“Oh, why not ? I do truly value

Your piety, sincerity and effort !”

Full of love, said the Lord,

The earth and sky and world yonder,

Echoed with immense joy and cheer.

Shree Raama ran His fingers, gently,

On the fluffy back of his little devotee,

As stripes, marks of love, appear,

To be on squirrel’s back, then on, forever.

Vanita Thakkar (10-06-2023)

This poem narrates a very famous story from the Raamaayana, which has always inspired me. I narrate it during my teaching sessions or talks and on relevant occasions.

In the modern fast world of competitions and acquisitions, it is easy to underestimate the value of true, but seemingly trivial individual efforts. This story shows that each individual effort is important in team work. A true leader, like Lord Raama, accepts and appreciates every contributor.

One gets reminded of this incident even as a lone, significant contributor in thankless working conditions, which may be due to working under substandard leadership / administration.