A Stroll Along the River I Ritu Belani

A Stroll Along the River

Ritu Belani ‘24

Nothing you’ve ever encountered in this world holds a torch To the magic, the mystique, the bone-shivering delight Of a stroll all alone along the dreamy river, Just you and Nature hand-in-hand at midnight.

Submerged beneath a spell-like slumber, the electric city snores Through the gently-lapping ripples of abstraction. As sound lulls on its dull night shift, sleepy frogs croak, Attempting to warn you of a danger you could never imagine.

Snug under the warm blanket of a black cosmos, You wish the Sun could stay in bed forever—or at least till you’re gone, Dreading that it will soon rise, cast off the star-speckled sheet, And repaint the sky’s canvas with a garish orange dawn.

You inhale now, longingly, and the peace-purifed air Relays the soft sways of blue tulips by the shore. They dance delicately, entrancingly in the light night breeze. Rhythm-driven, whim-ridden, you shift ways—let there be one more.

Your eyes imbibe the shimmering moonlight. Like a strange silver liquor, it steers your mind. Guiding you down as you tiptoe to the water’s edge, Somehow in the mud and darkness you accomplish the climb.

Silky slivers of speech tug you closer to the river: Bent over the banks, you squint at the water, only separated by inches. It pleads starry-eyed innocence with a mesmerizing refection. Mirrored in this being, your pockets gleam with all of Earth’s riches.

Whirling whispers that vow the world persuade you—come into the water. So you sever your anchor and let the currents take you where they wish. Alas, the frogs strived to alert you to the beast’s trap, But you became another foolish sailor the Sirens’ song would bewitch.

Syrupy-smooth waves stroke your arms—all tension now evaporates as Rising vapor hisses for all your mental command to buckle. The River that pledged your new beginning will deliver your end, And as its jaws wrap around your body, out rings an eerie chuckle.