Vidya Chandran

North Sioux City, SD, USA

Vidya started writing poetry at the age of eleven. Her greatest inspiration are her parents who firmly believe that anything their daughter put down on paper was worth writing about. Married to Chandran in '92, Vidya has a Masters in Indian History form Madras University, India; and today is a homemaker and proud mother of a 4-year-old daughter, Shilpa. She says, "My poems are mostly centered around nature and its many manifestations, for I sincerely believe we have lots to learn from her." Her poems are being published in the anthologies of The National Library of Poetry and she has won the Editor's Choice Award for 1997. You may email her at shilpachandran@juno.com or at vadivcha@hotmail.com

Man 'N Nature

In the rays of the morning sun
I see not just another new day
But the beginning of life, hope and trust

In the vast expanse of water
I see not just the ocean or the sea
But a reflection of man's insatiable desires and needs.

In the leaping tongues of the flame
I see not just its orange depth
But man's will to rise higher
A tribute to his quest

In the howling gust of the wind
I see not just nature's force
But man's effort to maintain a tenuous hold
On life's shifting course

In the pouring sheets of rain
I see not just the parched earth that welcomes it
But man's eagerness to acquire knowledge
And with this his willingness to help the rest

In the many facets of nature
I see not just her singular beauty
But a reflection of man's innate qualities

Desolation

Lush green grass rolling plains sparkling rivers meandering close No wonder this God's creation as it was Man's accursed hand a cruel blow did deal to render asunder the fabric His power had wrought Today parched denuded lands stand forlorn Silent reminders of man's haste to make better todays for himself Sparing no thought for the rest that live or the tomorrows yet to come

The Artist

A heavy downpour
brought in its wake
The shining orb
that bathed the land with new light
The grass seemed much more greener
the flowers lots more brighter
And from the leaves in droplets came
little beads of the now spent rain,
cleansing the earth and the inner self
heralding the advent of something new.
Suddenly in the distance I espied
A rainbow of myriad hues
'whose palette has wrought such splendor?'
'which artist created you?' I wondered
The lord in his infinite love
has given us mortals
a gift from above