Student Publishing Program ::

Arjun Vellayappan

The Shining Kurta

I was cleaning my closet
when I found a diamond in the rough.
It was a small Indian dress
called a kurta, standing out in the stuff.

My eyes fell upon it,
its maroon top,
silky pants and
scarf sparkling like a star,

My grandparents came to mind,
as they’d bought this dress for me.
I remembered the love and care they combined,
and how I’d never repaid them.

The kurta’s silky interior and intricate designs
were as rich as India and showed
how I should have enshrined
my home country instead of ignored it.

Although the dress has now grown old,
what it represented will last a lifetime.
It taught me to embrace my heritage,
as a way to repay my grandparents and home country.

[TABLE OF CONTENTS, LHS CLASS OF 2011 EDITION]