---

It’s as if my limbs reach back towards a door,

my heels knocking gently.

You tell me to draw my navel back to my spine, 

spread my collarbones, relax the tense pillars of my neck,

find myself in the spaces between skin and mat. 

Arched back, vertebrae lifted to the skies,

I attempt to cross over to the side you say 

might hold some answers for a restless life.

It would be a lie if I told you my heels find the mat easily. 

They take turns, extending one by one.

Pulling from the hip, my legs tremble like guitar cords 

plucked too hard, my muscles burning, yearning for the floor. 

You say, the path to the answers I seek is

through fire, through the many moments of instability, 

through an inevitable pathway of discomfort, 

that eventually stretches into contentment. 

I nod and softy agree.

---

Shikha Sawhney Lamba is a jewellery designer and poet living in Hong Kong. She is the co-editor of an online magazine, Coffee and Conversations. Shikha’s poetry has been published in journals globally. Her poems have been nominated for Best of the Net. She is a 2023 Pushcart prize nominee.