Amalia

Karishma Gandhi of 11-E took part in the Taaleem Poetry Competition, 2014. She composed a resplendent poem  titled "Amalia" revolving around the theme 'Metamorphosis'.

Through cracked windows her form could be seen,
A skinny teenage girl scrubbing floors for money.
Hair damp in a bun, hands worn with mud,
Clothes in tatters, covered to the top with dust.
But there was a gleam in her no weather could kill,

A gleam that shone in her eyes of such professional skill.

 

The ringmaster calls, she stands upright,
The time has come, her gleam glows bright.
It engulfs her form and spreads her wings out wide,
The rush fills her veins, see her fly!
She walks out a different person,
Just for a while, her name is not her own.
With glittering eyes and hair done up,
Now she is Amalia the star of the show.
The stage her home, the audience parts of her soul.
Watch her leap to her thick supporters; the ropes.
Watch her fly in grace, what a sight!
As within her the gleam ignites,
It encompasses each being present, watching,
It shows them unadulterated, pure raw feeling.

The beat drops at its point,
Dead silence descends as she falls from up high,
See her glide among the colored swirls,
Weightless and fluid as she swings and curves,
Watch her passion flowing through the ropes,
Mesmerizing and Enchanting with every twist and turn.
Now she lands once again.
Folding her wings, taking in the fame,
Marking her place in beating hearts,
As Amalia, the Queen of  Circus Dance.

 

The judge's critique of Karishma's poem were as follows;

 

"Karishma’s poem contains a lovely story, well told. The theme of metamorphosis is well supported in the two completely different ‘lives’ of Amalia. Our first vision of the ‘skinny teenage girl scrubbing floors’ evokes sympathy, and then the direct voice to the reader to ‘see her fly’ and ‘watch her leap!’ commands our attention and respect as we see the freedom, grace and beauty of the performer.

 

The long first stanza mirrors the tension and pace of the action. Then the break and the ambiguity of ‘dead silence descends as she falls from up high’ suggests a possible disaster or return to her old life/reality followed by the relief as she lands safely, the ‘Queen of Circus Dance’.

 

There is a great deal of merit in this poem, Karishma. The more I read it, the more I like it. Well done"