One last time

In her twilight years
Long-buried memories
Surfaced with a surprise
An English school prayer
We hardly knew she knew
She recited in one breath
And correctly pronounced
Words like cuisine, madame
We hardly heard her use before
We got to know she favoured turquoise
As a child
"The colour of the sea
We saw in Goa"
We learnt she visited the place
With her father the year before he died
"Everything went adrift after that"
She said and often fell silent
As she brooded on the dark years
She was able to escape after her marriage
Which explained why she bought soaps
Hairoil, shampoo in excess
Every month and hoarded them
Cooked extra for the unexpected guest
Liked to feed the hungry
Gave the same rich fare she ate
For the nocturnal alms-seeker ---
When she was fading she always spoke
Of the dishes she was fond of
And couldn't have as a child
And now she was not allowed to have
Before I could give her the sweet she wanted
One last time, mother died in her sleep.