The Womb – Poems on Mother , Father , Children , Parenthood – Volume 2 by Nikhil Parekh - HTML preview

23. 9 MONTHS 

9 months of painstaking labor, 

9 months of confinement in Luke warm recesses of womb, 

9 months of parasitic nourishment from mother food, 

9 months of luxury cushioning in chambers of slime, 

9 months of oblivion from vagaries of life, 

9 months of proximity with rich mass of intestine, 

9 months of blissful sleep sheltered from light, 

9 months of swim in bountiful fluid encapsulating body, 

9 months of gentle caress by her hands occasionally gliding over inflated part of her belly, 

9 months of complete suspension in elastic skin pouch, 

9 months of developing skin and formation of calcium bone, 

9 months of perpetual ecstasy moving tiny legs and hands, 

9 months of incessant heat ensuring future health, 

9 months of carrier comfort in perambulators of flesh, 

9 months of pitch dark existence with blurred premonitions of beautiful mother, 

9 months of perspiration blending profusely with gastric juice, 

9 months of anxious wait for an encounter with all living and created, 

the time is up; multiple day wait seems concluded, 

dazzling light of the sun blinds me in entirety, 

compassionate soft hands of my mother raise me to the Almighty, 

as I open my eyes; emit my first incoherent scream, 

silencing worldly commotion with innocent cries of fresh birth.