Pilgrim on the Hosur Road by Geraldine Charles
Kneeling amongst shards of sun bleached grass, sweat prickling my brow, squinting against the sun's glare, my eyes trace the patterns etched in stone, slowly deciphering first letters, then words, until names unspoken all these years, form before my eyes. I recall your sepia likenesses, captured over a century ago, now lovingly preserved in albums and on walls. I have travelled over four thousand miles for this brief reunion, with you, my kinsmen.
The shadows of the shade trees lengthen, as the sun dips in the western sky. Making my way back I wonder, 'Will I be the last to return here or will others of my family, your descendents yet to be born, retrace my footsteps and make the same pilgrimage to that cemetery on the Hosur Road?'
Taken from Voices on the Verandah An Anthology of Anglo-Indian Prose and Poetry.
The entire sales proceeds goes to CTR a charity helping Anglo-Indians in India.
It is available from http://www.blairrw.org/ctr
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