A Conquistador's Lament

Among dissolving rocks,

ripped camouflages,

roots shielded well

from shocks—

filling the emptiness

of marshes,

waiting impatiently

between wars,

counting those

faraway stars

where hot blood

mars the germinating

bud of peace,

the restless conquistador lies,

increasingly uncomfortable,

in wild dreams

of lost victories.

Anjali Angelika Sarkar was born in Remcheid, Germany, educated in Calcutta, India, and currently lives in Silver Spring, Maryland. Dr. Sarkar is a biologist who studies the development of the placenta at Children's National Medical Center, Washington, D.C. She teaches Biology at Trinity Washington University. She practices yoga and performs Kathak, an Indian classical dance.