Sunday Poem: Homecoming

Childhood Homecomings,
Grandparents and warm embraces,
sweet delicacies to relish,
aromatic fragrances
that assailed the senses.
Flickering diyas at eventide,
from the puja room
on the roof, as we played hide and seek.
Happiness undefined.

Journeys and distant detours
over the decades blur vision.
Present times Homecomings.
Moments before touchdown
in Bhubaneswar,
I strain my neck
for a glimpse of the deula
Lingaraj Temple, in Ekamra Kshetra
towering 150 feet high.

Odisha, the land of temples and hills,
Entices the weary
to its pristine sea-lines.
Hear the music of the waves roar
during monsoon showers,
or gently kiss
the sand in sunny skies.
My heart sighs in gratitude.
Home. Joy underlined.