The Silent Sentinel

 

- The ones who stay, even after the flags go away

The desert keeps no calendar,

yet it remembers each Independence Day

Blistering winds in glaciers too,

test the sentinel in every way.

It chisels frost into his bones,

the one who stands, rifle steady,

heartbeat thumping like a drum

Prepared to fall, always ready.

Meanwhile, down in the plains,

Seasonal patriotism sprouts amongst all 

Tricolour flags at traffic lights

destined for dustbins by nightfall.

We shout ourselves hoarse in parades,

then soothe our throats with ice cream cones.

We forward memes on Insta feeds

Speeches of courage, recorded on phones.

Our “patriotic spirit” comes in packs,

buy one, get one slogan free.

Expires sharp at midnight hour,

till next Pahalgam or next TV spree.

“True love for the motherland—

valid till midnight, 15th August only.”

And yet a soldier still keeps watch,

in sandy dunes, in white snows—so lonely.

Unseen by masses, unaffected by applause,

Bravery cannot be copy-pasted.

The hollow cries of borrowed pride

mock a life that none has tasted.

The sky, though, knows the difference.

It is not the slogan it salutes

but the silhouette that never leaves its post

Dug deep as the banyan in its roots.

Not for the noise of marching bands,

nor for applause that fades too fast,

but for a promise that must endure,

an oath meant to last.

And maybe—just maybe—

the next time a flag we wave,

Remember the hand that couldn’t wave back.

But precious life for you it willingly gave

I was inspired by a short video shared by an Army friend in which the poet has written a poem in Hindi talking about our मौसमी देशभक्ति (which I translated as seasonal patriotism). I have included those same words as my appreciation and acknowledgement to the original author of that poem. I have always had this view but could never find the right words. Today the words just flowed and here it is - my tribute to the Indian Soldiers - the unsung heroes, the unseen guardians of our frontiers. 

- 17th August 2026