Only the other day we two swung in the woods
In a swing decorated with flowers;
If now and then that thought comes to your mind
Please never ever try to suppress it.
You know how that day the wind brought out
The crazy thoughts I had in me all the while.
The sky everywhere then had scattered across it
Something very much like your smile!
As I moved on, a full moon had lit up the horizon
Who knows what good fortune let us two meet that day!
Now I can't seem to have such luck anymore
And must bear the burden of our separation
All alone. Please don't ever try to sever
The rakhi we tied ritually to make us two one forever.

Fakrul Alam is Bangabandhu Chair Professor, Department of History, University of Dhaka.