On National Postal Day, we celebrate the rich legacy of the Indian Postal System.
With the prompt “A letter arrived that morning…”,
our writers wove heartfelt emotions into 100-word poems.
Here are the winning entries:
Dive into these beautiful creations and relive the magic of letters!
I have a wooden box full of letters,
Letters you gave me,
Letters I wrote you,
Yes, all are with me.
A treasure to cherish,
A treasure to love,
Those non-cellular days carried so much romance,
To hide the letter with perfume sprayed on it.
To wait for it, to read it, re-read it, to feel it.
That was romance.
Gone are those days, I wait for a letter to come, but you never write.
I read the yellow-colored pages of some 25-year-old letters.
I find you more there.
They are not love letters,
They are emotions,
My first poem, your first poem,
All are there.
Love those letters you wrote me,
I find you more there.
– Anindita Bhattacharya
A letter arrived that morning,
For which she had been longing for years.
Her eyes filled with a pool of tears,
Memories popped up, both joy and fear.
Her hands suddenly trembled with fear,
Yet she gathered herself to open the letter,
For it had an answer from the one, her dear—
To tie or not to tie the wedding knot together.
She opened the letter with utmost care,
And scanned it so deep, so quick,
She cried louder and louder,
Touching and feeling the “YES” in the letter.
Letters carry bundles of emotions,
Tied together in a postman’s bag.
Holding the letter in hand,
Always feels like talking personally!
– Padmapriya Suresh
A letter arrived that morning,
Much awaited it had been,
With a dot of saffron on it,
An invitation for an auspicious ceremony.
We knew, even before opening,
A letter arrived that morning.
In a perfumed pink envelope,
From a distant, I could guess,
A billet-doux from my beloved.
A letter arrived that morning,
In a formal brown envelope.
With a palpitating heart, I wondered,
Rejection or selection, what it contained?
This time, it was a plain postcard,
With a corner cut from one side.
Expecting bad news, mom almost fainted.
It sure contained ominous news—
That dear grandma was no more.
– Sarita Khullar
A letter arrived that morning,
Looked simple but warming.
In an Insta world, it was surprising;
Leaving all work, I started reading:
“Dear, in the mirror we meet every day,
But you hardly have your say.
An intelligent, ambitious teenager,
A beautiful bride, with dreams to nurture.
This is who you were, my dear,
But they changed you, I fear.
They made you uncomfortable,
Telling you imperfection was unacceptable.
Time to realize, it’s your life—
Not just as a daughter-in-law or wife.
Being perfect is an absolute lie,
Don’t let the fire inside you die.
Promise yourself a smile,
And get things reconciled!”
Your Inner Voice
— Sheetal Pradhan Deshpande
