Contributor: Chumki Sharma

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Once again
I sleepwalk this night,
wander into the living room
where the ghost of a lover visits me.

Still boyish, a cape on his
forever youthful shoulders.
I try to remember
If he was my long lost uncle,
my lover, my friend, my son?
He sits on my window ledge,
our fingers build a minaret
and lock warmth inside,
and he tells me-
life lasts forever,
love is forever,
before vanishing into the mist.

But who was he?
who am I?
what worlds have I known
before I knew this one?

The antique wall clock
chimes three,
the darkest hour
before dawn.
I set the time
an hour earlier
and stalk loneliness.


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Chumki Sharma is a poet from Calcutta, India. She is widely published and her works have appeared in various publications in many parts of the world. She is also a renowned spoken word performer.