They Stopped Short

by Ananya S. Guha / July 5th, 2026

They stopped short
Saw the animal emerge
From the bushes
They stopped short
Heard gunshots
Cackle of foxes
Something emerges
From dark forests
They stopped short
Saw maimed bodies
Wafting in red river
They stopped short
Sky blues darkened
They stopped short
The world leader as usual
In his loquacious ways
Said something, a mumble
A jumble

They stopped short
Forever

Their footprints etched heavily
They stopped short
They were in a pilgrimage
To uncover deep wounds
And sorrow
They stopped short
Only war was longer
They stopped short
To see how guns behave
In approximate ways
Or drones murmur
Soft whispers of love

They stopped short
Forever forever
Now their wisdom
Lies in soft springs of
Cascading water
For they have melted
Somewhere, sometime in
Denudations of time

They stopped short
And we are stopping
With them, sailing across

Ananya S Guha lives in Shillong in North East India, where he was born and brought up. He has been writing and publishing his poetry for the last forty years. His poetry has been published in both electronic and print formats such as: Indian Literature, Other Voices, Osprey Journal, Glasgow Review, The Literary Nest, Up The Staircase, Asia Writes, Art Arena, Praxis Online, Muse India, Your One Phone Call, In Between Hangovers, The Peeking Cat Magazine, Post Colonial Text among others. He has also written widely on educational and social matters. He has ten collections of poetry and his poetry has been anthologized in various collections of Indian poetry in English. He holds a doctoral on the novels of William Golding. Read other articles by Ananya S..

This article was posted on Sunday, July 5th, 2026 at 8:00am and is filed under Poetry.