The Sacred Dance The midnight train through the echo tunnel windows streaked with the monsoon rain the girl’s braids flap against the pane, two curious eyes sparkle The darkness is lit by the dappled light On and off, off and on, so on and so on The tunnel is done, but the light goes on The girl with the sparkle in her eyes Sleep lost to her. Sound of her mother’s Call is drowned out by the chuk-chuk -- The rhythm of the wheels on the metal tracks The mystery of the light, the spellbound girl An occasional red lantern in the rain And the twinkling, sparkling dots of light Shifting shape in the dark, a spectacular show Just for the young girls with the wonder Still left in their eyes, the spectral, sacred Dance of the love among the glowworms
Pratibha Kelapure is an Indian-American poet residing in California. Her poems appear in Choice Words: Writers on Abortion (Anthology, Haymarket Books, 2020), Entropy Magazine, Plath Poetry Project, miller’s pond poetry, The Lake, and many other literary magazines.
Amethyst Review 
love this. I remember train rides and long car rides as a child, sleep/wake/sleep/wake just like the flashing lights. But the chuk-chuk of the train is a special trail to the unconscious.
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