This reflective poem explores the quiet journey of turning inward and rediscovering hope within oneself. Through the metaphor of a forgotten inner room, it speaks about confronting hidden fears, clearing away old dust, and allowing light to return.

Ultimately, the poem reminds us that life is not meant to be observed from a distance—it is meant to be lived with courage, wonder, and a willingness to begin again.

# The Dusty Room Within #

Today I wanted
to meet myself
without the noise,
without the choices,
without the practiced smile
I always show the world.

The mirror didn’t accuse—
it simply waited.
And in its waiting
I saw it:
the tired curve of my mouth,
the weight my eyes have been carrying
like unshed rain.

Silence is honest.
It does not let you hide.
It peels back the layers
you once called strength
and whispers—
Look closer.

So I closed my eyes
and walked inward.

There is a room inside me
I had locked long ago.
Dust resting on old dreams.
Shelves bending under
unspoken fears.
A window painted shut
by disappointment.

But in the farthest corner,
beneath the quiet,
something was breathing.

Not loud.
Not dramatic.
Just steady.

Hope
doesn’t always roar—
sometimes it survives
like a stubborn ember
refusing to forget
it was once fire.

I brushed the dust away,
opened the window,
and let light argue with the dark.

And there it was—
that familiar ache to live fully,
to insist on wonder,
to be foolish enough
to believe in mornings again.

I remembered:
I am not the heaviness.
I am the one carrying it.
And if I can carry it,
I can set it down.

Tomorrow,
when the first light
touches the edge of the sky,
I will not ask it for permission.

I will rise with it.

Because this life—
fragile, fleeting, fierce—
is not meant to be watched
from behind closed doors.

It is meant to be opened,
to be lived,
to be enjoyed,
to be smiled through.

(Vijay Verma)
 www.retiredkalam.com

Categories: kavita

Tags: #creativity, #emotion, #Life, #Love, #poem, #poetry, #wellness, featured, Poem, writing