Love That Comes Back

Love returns if it is pure

‘Can you change the music Nana?’ my three-year-old grandson spoke very softly.

The music that plays in my car is always of my liking, soft, romantic and sentimental songs of the 50s and 60s that one could never get tired of.

‘You don’t like it?’

‘We can play it at some other time,’… his answer amazed me! For a moment I thought I was talking to a mature person.

I looked back and both my stars smiled at me.

The distance from their school to our home is hardly two miles and within that much time, they have to share their prattle and listen to peppy music too!

‘Nana, please put it loud,’ he keeps on requesting, oblivious of the fact that soft music would never seem loud.

‘We don’t listen to a very loud music, dear’ I say in my grandmotherly style but my advice goes unheard.

‘Daddy always puts it super duper loud!’ he proudly declares.

I rummage through the old collection of CDs lying in the glove box of my car and stumble upon a peppy mix.

‘I can’t hear anything,’ he says while I am still loading the CD.

‘Wait.’

A squeal hits the roof! Louder! The demand doesn’t wane.

We reach home even before a single song could be heard and in a moment everything is forgotten, with new puddles to jump into and splashing water all over, making bubbles and catching them, pushing and apologising till I announce lunch time.

Time passes by like a whirlwind and everyday we heave a sigh of relief when these express trains go home. The treasured moments we choose to spend with our grandchildren are special because they testify that love returns, empty nest fills again with glee and giggles. I love the expression on their faces when they softly whisper… ‘Nana I love you.’

Each stage of childhood is awesome, each milestone precious, each hug emits the love of the whole world and we are glad we can share it more than their parents who are rushing (like once we did) to meet the challenges of life.

When my children flew out of my nest, I was heartbroken, wondering what is left in life, as our lives seemed to be buzzing only with them.

Slowly we learned to live without them, trying to detach.

This is one of the poems I wrote at that time:

Wheel Of Time…

We search
Those tiny hands, which eagerly held us
Those dainty feet, which needed balance
Those lovely eyes, which emitted brightness
Those soft tears which needed endearment
Those fleeting moments that slipped by.

We take pride in
That unconditional love we shared
That eagerly sought guidance we treasured
That much needed support for each other
That joy of giving
That pain of separation!

We know
The wheel of time moves on
New bonds, new ties ignite
Moments fleet, memories drift, shadows glide
There is always hope
At the horizon we seek.

You search
The future, we search the past
The quest is common, perceptions differ
We soar with you, the flight is slow
We’ll be together
As past merges into future.
© Balroop Singh, 2003

Love comes back

We did soar with them, waiting, hoping and trying to peep into future, which is here!
Another poem that complements the older one:

Love Returns

We have found
Those tiny hands we searched
Those little feet that follow us
Those big eyes that beckon
Those angelic smiles to reckon

We take pride in
New love that is cuddlier
New bonds that clasp us
Delightful moments that glow
Rivulets of respect that flow

Now we know
If it pervades our souls
Love returns in another form
Detachment is just an illusion
It unlocks the secrets of delusion

Let’s not forget
Whatever you give comes back
Selfless and real love returns
Instill the value of love
Pour it in its purest form.
© Balroop Singh, 2018

Time for introspection!

Thank you for reading this. Please add your valuable reflections, they are much appreciated.

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Balroop Singh.

 

48 thoughts on “Love That Comes Back

  1. This is just beautiful, Balroop! The last four lines are exquisite… That’s love! ❤ .
    "Let’s not forget
    Whatever you give comes back
    Selfless and real love returns
    Instill the value of love
    Pour it in its purest form."

  2. Balroop, this is such a beautiful read. Both your poems are so profound. I loved the concluding verse of your poem ‘ wheel of time’ . You’ve explained it so well. I am in love with your words 💝

  3. Balroop, this is so beautiful. I, too, have experienced those stages of love that change over the years. You think nothing will ever match the love you have for your own young children. Then you have grandchildren. xx

    1. Well said Norah…exactly my sentiments! Such hues of love brighten our days. Thank you for standing by Emotional Shadows and share your thoughts, much appreciated. 🙂

  4. That is such a cozy anecdote you shared with us, Balroop. I smiled at the playful antics of your grandson, who certainly wants to play and have things go his way. You are very kind to oblige ever so slowly to change the tune…and then off he goes, distracted by something else. I thought these two poems here go together very well, each a response to each other. This line is so profound ‘As past merges into future.’ Time shows us love, and love shows us time. Like you said, if it’s love, it will come back to us. It’s what I’ve always believed in myself. It works in the strangest of ways but always worth the wait 🙂

  5. I will never forget when my first child left the nest. And she–on her way to a military academy. Yikes! Could it be mroe dangerous? I was so thankful I still had one at home.

  6. I liked the last four lines of first poem. I’m sure that the time you spend with your grand children is much more cherished than the one you spent with your children in a different way. With your own kids you have so many responsibilities and at times, you are also working, But in these years you are free of some of these responsibilities. Keep sharing such write up!

    1. Thank you arv, I am glad you appreciate the positivity of last four lines. Past did merge into future and here we are, happier than those days when I penned those lines to assuage my emotions by pouring them into poetry. Life is like that…welcome it as it comes! Life lessons that we learn slowly!

  7. Such pleasure the wee ones bring into our lives Balroop. Your line about the parents whizzing by in every day life comparing to a grandparent who takes in every moment is spot on.
    I laughed at the music thing, I do that with my own husband who loves listening to the 50s in the car and I always change the channel on him. LOL. Beautiful poetry to go with your beautiful story. ❤

    1. Yes Deb…time just flew by with so much to do that I yearned it to come back and now it seems it stands before me in another form, with sparkling eyes! With slower pace, we savor the moments with greater joy! Thanks for sharing your own music story. 🙂

  8. Beautiful, Balroop. I love the pair of poems and the cyclical nature they represent. I can relate to both. The story of the louder music is a great example of the presence of joy. 🙂

    1. Along with joy, there is the willingness to flow with the moments of love…that’s why grandparents are liked so much! They have fewer objections. 🙂

  9. I loved your poems, Balroop. You always have a great way of zeroing in on the most important aspects of life. Love it! ❤

  10. These are so wonderful emotional thoughts. I can sense the times you’ve had…and I can also feel that you are having a great time with your grandkids 😊
    Life should be all about this!

    1. I like to share only the positive parts of time – the terrible traitor – though some of my poems talk about pain but they lie buried in my poetry books. 🙂

  11. I love every words you share Balroop from the time with your Grandchildren to these beautiful poems.
    Moments with kids, grandkids are precious. I am glad my parents can enjoy for grandson quite often. They do say it’s making a wonderful difference to their lives.
    Stay blessed Balroop.

    1. Thanks you Marie for loving and understanding the emotion that underlines these poems…I am glad your parents are having a wonderful time with their grandson. It is a blessing when you trust your parents with your kids…some try to maintain distance. Love and hugs dear friend.

  12. My eldest is away in S. Korea and my youngest is here but always out! It is a time to spend more time with the hubby… I’m thankful that they are happy, independent young women but I do miss them being little!

    1. I agree Marje, their happiness is all that matters and if we can add to it, it is an added advantage. Also, spending time with each other gives a new dimension to life. Thanks for sharing your view, much appreciated.

    1. Hi Vishnu, nice to see you here…hope all is well and 2018 has given new directions to your life. Thanks for standing by. Miss your newsletters.

  13. Balroop, I so loved this post.. I smiled so wide as your grandson asked for the volume to be louder.. 🙂 they are such a delight and such a blessing in our lives are our Grandchildren.. I only have one, but they bring so much joy.. Your poetry of sharing that New Love, as we let our Children go as they fly the nest..Our lives enriched even further with our Grandchildren.. Wonderful my friend 🙂 ❤

    1. Thanks for sharing your own delightful love that sustains us…indeed our little ones enrich our lives beyond measure and give us an opportunity to relive our childhood. All those games I had forgotten have come back to add new joy to my days. 🙂

  14. Balroop, your poems are a perfect balance to each other capturing the full cycle of motherhood…your pain at separation in the first is beautifully resolved in the second when new lives are born, to be cherished. My son is heading off to university in 18 months and I am so proud of him – the person he has become, excited to see where his future lies. I know though I will miss him so – we are such close friends as well as mother & son – but feel his need to explore the world and for me to stretch out further with my passions and interest in life. Real contact can never disappear, it just changes (I say now from the security of having a hungry teenager just back from school!). PS. I love the introduction to your post and your wise diplomatic grandchild, ‘we can play it some other time…’ Bless. hugs xxxxx

  15. Pride on which we ride is sadly accompanied with unforgettable moments of looking around and wishing time could stand still! It takes many years to get used to life in a home that seems empty, a yearning gnaws within to hear the sound ‘mommy’…the heart misses a beat each time you hear this word spoken in the vicinity. I poured all my emotions into poetry at that time. Here we are…doubly rewarded for giving wings to them 🙂
    Thank you Annika for sharing your emotions as a mother. I am glad you could relate to these poems.

  16. Lovely poems, Balroop. “The quest is common/ but the perception differs”- this seems such an eternal introspection for all of us, in every way of life, irrespective of generations. For each one of us, the way is different, but we search the same!

    1. You have picked up the key point Mani…the quest remains the same for all the ages and generations. 🙂 Thanks for the words of appreciation.

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