What lies beneath

There is this childhood memory

that has stayed with me

of a group of friends

chancing upon silver ferns

for the first time

in the forest around our homes,

of examining its’ leaves

with the pleasing green on top

fringed by the unexpected silver

and then all that glorious silver dust below

and a joyous afternoon spent

tattooing our arms and the back of our hands

and our foreheads and cheeks

with that silver dust.

We were obsessed and began to look

at wild plants more closely,

constantly turning leaves

wanting to be surprised.

We had also stumbled on to something else -

that, sometimes,

the real beauty and magic

is in what lies beneath.

Ronita Chattopadhyay (she/her) is an Indian poet who finds refuge in words. Her poems and prose have appeared in numerous online literary magazines in her country and elsewhere. This includes The Hooghly Review, Roi Fainéant Press, Akéwì Magazine, Setu, RIC Journal, Porch Lit Magazine and in online and print anthologies by Querencia Press and Sídhe Press. She also journeys with words in her work while supporting not for profit organisations in India. And she loves books, mountains and tea.