Page 15 - All India Magazine Jul-2026

To R.
On Her Birthday

The repetition of thy gracious years
Brings back once more thy natal morn.
Upon the crest of youth thy life appears,—
A wave upborne.

Amid the hundreds thronging Ocean’s floor
A wave upon the crowded sea
With regular rhythm pushing towards the shore
Our life must be.

The power that moves it is the Ocean’s force
Invincible, eternal, free,
And by that impulse it pursues its course
Inevitably.

We, too, by the Eternal Might are led
To whatsoever goal He wills.
Our helm He grasps, our generous sail outspread
His strong breath fills.

Exulting in the grace and strength of youth
Pursue the Ocean’s distant bound,
Trusting the Pilot’s voice, the Master’s ruth
That rings us round.

Rejoice and fear not for the waves that swell,
The storms that thunder, winds that sweep;
Always our Captain holds the rudder well,
He does not sleep.

All India Magazine, July 2026 15