I am made endless for your pleasure
Again and again emptied and filled
A frail vessel ever with fresh life
And melodies eternally new
Breathed through me
As though a little reed flute
Cast over the earth
And at your hand’s immortal touch
My small heart loses all limits of joy
To create ineffable utterances
And on these small hands of mine
Your infinite gifts are received
Ages pass and still they pour
And still there is room for more
Navika Ramjee was born in South Africa in 1950 into an Indian family. Her family history is marked by that of the British Raj. She now lives in Oxford. Her work has appeared in The Wallace Stevens Journal and Aerodrome, a South African literary journal.