Maple Leaf in the Garden

Why this knocking O’*Peepul leaf?
After leaving you there she’s come to Canada.
Even here the leaves are creating a clamour.
The difference is that they are not seen in winter.

They look cute in summer.
In B.C. they remain mostly green.
When Cherry and Plums come to bloom,
they carry the  fragrance of Apple and Pears.

Flowers give out scent like blooming cotton.
Full Moon and the Stars are all twinkling.
Even the Walnut fill up like Hazelnuts
and fills the store for squirrels for the winter.

It’s the marvel of the flowers for Rodo and Azalea,
and what a romp by Magnolia and Camellia.
I ask Wisteria not to over-grow!
Stay where you are, don’t climb on the walnut.

Jasmine and Clematis are over-growing each other.
Who will match them by standing beside?
What to say of the rose whose colours are unmatched.
*Babihas come to sing over sweat-pea flowers.

I won’t be able to mention all of them.
Mind me not if I forget some.
Satwant always stays close by.
You have special meaning for me.

I love to take care of you more than that of my own.
The happiness that you award me is more than anything.
Who does not know the dogwood of B.C.?
And who does not recognize the Maple Leaf of Canada?

It looks like a gem embedded in a ring by someone
when the Maple Leaf swings in the Canadian flag.
You’d go around the world with a Maple Leaf
pen tucked in your pocket with pride
if you had the honour of being a Canadian.

We pray for the blessings to this virtuous nation;
which we have made our home.
Let’s learn and teach each other
and turn this land into heaven.

Copyright © 2010 by Satwant Pander. Used with Permission

*Peepul=Pippal (bo tree)
*Babehas=rain birds

The Friendship of Mothers and Daughters

Fast is the friendship of Mothers and Daughters.
And lucky are those destined to have it.

Sons grow up to support the Father.
Daughter threads two families together.

Daughter’s good deeds elate the honour of parents
and the world showers praises.

Everyone brings their destiny with birth.
Why should one worry about t?

Satwant asks, “What don’t I know?
And how should I try to learn it.”

Whatever I learnt from my heritage,
I would put into the palms of the Daughters.

I salute all the Mothers of the world.
Oh God, may none of them suffer any pain!

Copyright © 2009 by  Satwant Pander. Used with permission

Mother’s Affection

Our friendship,
our relationship,
always pure
Above all relations.

Our love
unconditional,
priceless.
One body,
one heart beat,
your breath stops
and I’ll live.
It’s impossible!
Your happiness, sadness, laughter, tears,
fears, worries, hunger and thirst
are all embedded in my memory.

It was security for me,
struggle for you.
Every where, every moment,
a Mother goes through this struggle
to welcome a new soul.

That day we became two from one.
Our bodies parted, our thinking
individualized, but our relationship
is intimate and eternal.

Mother! I bow to your affections
and dedicate each morning
and each evening to your name.

Copyright © 2009 by  Satwant Pander. Used with permission

Mother’s Courtyard

Oh Mother, in this, your court yard;
may whoever resides here
and puts the holy dust of your feet
to their forehead be blessed.

Pretty mountains covered in snow,
through God they appear to me
as necklaces made by goldsmiths
with gems threaded in them.

The reason the sun is called an angel
it brings ecstasy as it rises.
It’s redness brings excitement.
Chill disappears and sweat arrives.

When rays lend energy to man
and help feed him,
the pain and idleness run away
and man will long to toil.

Tell me Mother, how many praises
should I bestow on your courtyard?
I wish I could always praise your nature
Sip to the lees.

Sip to the lees…
Sip to the lees…

Copyright © 2009 by Satwant Pander. Used with permission

Soul Converses with Stars

A soul departs from the world
and says to the stars,
“Show me the way to Heaven,
for I long to go there.”

The stars gaped perplexed
but one shooting star spoke out.
“I saw from the sky
an amazing glimpse.”

“A place where the sun rises daily
embracing golden rays,
where dew drops, each morning,
shine like pearls.

Where the moon with beams of light
pull the water of the seas,
where the greenery turns into shawls
and covers the nudity of Earth.

Where the mountains stand still
and maintain guard   (or ) are sentinels,
where the clouds rain down
and rainbows shine in the sky.

That’s where you’ll find both
the steps to Heaven and the steps to Hell.
Some will rise and some will fall.

Copyright © 2009 by  Satwant Pander. Used with permission

Satwant Pander

Satwant was born and raised in Distt ludhiana  in Punjab India. She came to Canada in 1975 and settled in Abbotsford with her husband, where their children  were born and raised. She worked in healthcare over thirty years.

As hobbies, she always enjoyed knitting, crocheting, sewing, cooking, gardening, photography, reading and writing.

Nature gives her the positive and powerful energy which in a way has been therapeutic for her over the years. The purpose of her writings has been to help people find love for Nature. That stemmed from years of working on her farm, spending hours in her garden nurturing her plants, and finally  took the form of poetry when she was inspired by the beauty that surrounds her.

Her poems have been published in many Punjabi  books, magazines and local newspapers. Some poems in English were published with the poetry institute of Canada and  also in two anthologies published by. M.S.A poets potpourries society.

Satwant published her first book Magnoliye De Phul in Punjabi, released in November, 2011. The book was inspired by the tree Satwant  grew and nurtured for over 25 years with the picture of the magnolia tree on the cover as a symbol of that love for nature. Her second book, The Healing Power of Nature, released in the fall of 2013.