This heartfelt poem is a gentle message sent across time—a reflection from the present self to a 100-year-old future self.
Through simple rhymes and tender questions, it explores dreams, love, resilience, and hope, reminding us that the choices we make today shape the person we become tomorrow.
Letter to My 100-Year-Old Self
Hello dear self, so wise, so old,
A hundred years of stories told.
From Kolkata’s breeze and monsoon sky,
I send this note as time goes by.
Did we chase dreams we held so tight?
Did books and poems come to light?
Did colors bloom from brush and hand,
Like painted hopes we once had planned?
Did peace grow strong across the land?
Did love and laughter gently stand?
Though losses came like passing sea,
I hope they shaped you tenderly.
So keep our spark, let kindness stay,
Let courage guide you on your way.
If you still smile, then I can see—
You lived our life so proudly free.
(Vijay Verma)
www.retiredkalam.com
My book is now available on Amazon. You can find it here:
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Categories: kavita
Retiredकलम 
I love where you describe your purpose so beautifully by talking about your writing and art but truly loving happiness in the end.
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Thank you so much for your kind and thoughtful words. I’m truly touched that you connected with that part so deeply. Writing and art have always felt like gentle companions on my journey, ways to express what words alone sometimes cannot. But yes, at the heart of it all, happiness—simple, quiet, shared happiness—is what I value most.
It means a great deal to know that this feeling reached you and resonated with your heart. Your encouragement is sincerely appreciated, and I’m grateful you took the time to share it.
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What a beautiful and tender reflection this is! Verma ji, your poem “Letter to My 100-Year-Old Self” carries such gentle wisdom within its simple lines. The way you weave Kolkata’s monsoon breeze into a message across time creates an intimate bridge between present and future.
Those questions you ask—about dreams blooming like painted hopes, about peace growing strong across the land—they resonate deeply. There’s something so touching about wondering whether the person you become will recognize the dreams you once held.
The imagery of losses coming “like passing sea” is particularly lovely—suggesting both the inevitability of waves and their temporary nature, how they “shape you tenderly” rather than break you.
And that closing stanza is pure grace: “If you still smile, then I can see— / You lived our life so proudly free.” It’s a beautiful reminder that the choices we make today, the kindness we nurture, the spark we protect—these are the gifts we send forward to our future selves.
Thank you for sharing this gentle, hopeful piece. It made me pause and think about my own hundred-year-old self somewhere in the distance. 🙏
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Thank you so much for this deeply thoughtful and generous reflection. Your words truly touched my heart. I’m grateful that the poem spoke to you in such a gentle way and that you felt the bridge it tried to build between the present and the future.
I’m especially glad the imagery and questions resonated with you. You understood the spirit of the piece so beautifully—the idea that our dreams, even the quiet ones, continue to travel with us through time, shaping who we become. Your interpretation of the line about losses “like passing sea” was so perceptive; it means a lot to see those emotions received with such sensitivity.
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very nice .
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Thank you so much.
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The idea of writing to your 100-year-old self feels both intimate and hopeful. I especially loved how gently it weaves dreams, art, and resilience together. It leaves a soft reminder that today truly shapes tomorrow. Beautifully written. 🤍✨
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Thank you so much for your kind and thoughtful words. They truly mean a lot. I’m really glad the piece resonated with you and that you felt its gentle spirit—because that quiet sense of hope and reflection is exactly what it was meant to carry.
It’s wonderful to know it left you with that soft reminder about how today shapes tomorrow.
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