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Stolen Lives, Loves, And Homes

Stolen Lives, Loves, And Homes

3 mins
15.9K


It was a regular Saturday morning.

My daughter - Shova - had an off from school,

And my husband decided to take us out.

It was a pleasant day without a doubt.

Until, it happened.


About to leave home, I looked at the clock,

11:56 it said, we were already late.

Standing at the door, I called their names.

What happened next was probably our fate.

Shova ran up the stairs, back to her room.

Said she had forgotten her doll,

And to put on her new perfume.

I felt it then. I felt the ground shake.


Maybe I was dizzy,

For I had been on my toes, since awake.

Then I noticed everything else move too.

It was not only me, it was everything.

Everything.

I looked at my husband,

And he nodded with fear.

It was indeed an earthquake.


I shouted, "Shova, come back here."

He told me to get out of the house,

And he would go bring our daughter.

I tried walking towards him,

But my steps faltered.

He told me to get out,

This time sternly.

Before I could refuse,

He went after her.


The things had started falling,

The chairs, wall hangings, and the railings.

I panicked, ran out of the house.

On the roads, people were gathered.

I constantly looked at my house,

For my daughter and her father.

People were holding each other for support,

Praying for it to be over.


But it was just the beginning.

Beginning of the end.

The ground moved as if it was intoxicated.

Buildings began to crumble and fall,

The big, the small, the short, the tall.

The debris rained from above,

People scrambled like a colony of ants.

A man next to me was looking for his love.

I turned back at my house,

Now crumbling to dust.


I screamed and ran towards it,

Someone put his hand around my waist and grabbed me.

I struggled, pleading to be let go.

Begging him to set me free.

He told me it was dangerous,

Probably futile.

I kicked and screamed and begged some more.

He put me down,

I dashed towards the pile.

Trying to move the bricks with my hand,

Tears ran down my cheeks.


The earth was still moving,

The tree near me was about to fall,

Someone pulled me up and away from it all.

People were covered in demise,

Cries of help from the inaccessible.

In those moments which lasted an eternity,

The world was proving the theory of gravity.

Then all went still.


All we could hear were sirens,

Breaking the ominous silence.

I noticed the cracked streets.

And the people helping each other with all means.

I asked the officers to look under the debris.

They assured me that they will,

And moved us to someplace safe.

We spent the night in tents,

I cried myself to sleep.


In the morning they told us,

That they found no living soul among the mess.

My heart sank. My stomach plunged.

There was a hole in my chest.

As if, through it, someone had punched.

About to break down and weep,

I heard a young boy cry in his sleep.


I went to him, sat and held him close.

He opened his eyes and said,

He knew his parents hadn't survived.

I calmed him down and told him to have hope.

He rested his head on my lap,

And asked me when he could go home.

I answered, "Soon.", he inquired when would I,

My eyes welled up, but I smiled for his sake.

I didn't know where was home anymore.


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