Darshanika Panda – Yet the doves of Kabul sing
The bustling streets of Kabul
were once a haven for doves
with kohl rimmed eyes and fragile wings,
they sang their lore in unbroken tongues,
danced the Attan barefoot on sun kissed earth,
fluttering beneath a sky of golden hues.
But the men around, it is said
resented the joy of these doves
they clipped each wing with quiet laws,
stitched the heavens shut with threads of fear,
and herded the doves into cages
lined with silk, silence, and sorrow.
Even in those cages
the doves remained true to their souls,
they cooed lullabies in secret code
to the cage’s listening walls,
guiding their young to fly on trembling wings
toward a future no cage could hold.