A beauty

The air was calm
Silent waves rose and fell
Now and then, the leaves fluttered
And the sari rustled
The image formed and then scattered away.

He came there
Saw, admired, said, ‘How lovely’!

She suddenly startled,
Roused from rumination
looked at the mirrior in the water
Then slowly raised her face;
Saw the timeless beauty of the mountains
Heard the silent sound of the sea
And realized suddenly
That whatever is perishable
Can ever lovely be?
Mortal beauty can never compare with
the enchanting phenomena of lapping of the waves
Or the blossoming of a beautiful flower.

Today she looked beautiful
And he may admire her
But tomorrow she would be an old lady
And none will be here to say, Ah! Poor she!
The river will flow calmly,
The breeze will blow coolly
And it will rain timely.
Other girls will come and sit there
And will be called pretty!

She was only a small part
Of the chain stretching to eternity
And only so far as
She was a sparkle of the fire burning constantly
Shining brightly for a moment
Dying out the next could she be called a beauty.