‘Songs of Solitude’ is a collection of 21 poems by first-time author Harini Ramesh, covering topics ranging from dreams, motivation, getting hurt, failure, sorrow, heartbreak, hope, and healing.
“We all grow up with a lot of friends and family around. In spite of being surrounded by people, when one hits adulthood, there is a feeling of solitude – having to discover and go through the process of adulting is nothing short of a roller-coaster ride,” summarises Harini Ramesh, Associate Analyst at West Pharmaceuticals, Bengaluru.
Book Leaf Publishing published the work of the author, who holds a M.Sc degree in computer science from St. Joseph’s University, Bengaluru.
The author-poet Harini Ramesh has a M.Sc degree in computer science from St. Joseph’s University in Bengaluru, and is an Associate Analyst at West Pharmaceuticals, Bengaluru.
Harini Ramesh wrote the poems with the intention of evoking a sense of belonging, community, and togetherness.
“Readers may come from varied backgrounds – privileged, self-made, outspoken, shy, male, female, young and old. But irrespective of who you are, there are certain shared life experiences among us. The poems are about these shared experiences, lessons and emotions,” she says.
The book starts with the poem – ‘Taking on Tomorrow, Unafraid’. For most of us, the uncertainty that the future brings, is a fear factor. That could be because of resistance to change. However, as some of us might have experienced – having that one person who stands by you through everything can make all the difference.
Yes, the uncertainty is very much still there. But you now have a new-found courage to take on the challenges that tomorrow brings.
It could be a close friend, a partner, a parent, or a sibling. That one person, and their small gestures are enough to instil confidence in your mind. Some of us may not be lucky enough to have that person in our lives. Some of us are yet to find that one person who will always root for you in your life. At such times, the situation forces us to be that person for ourselves. Hence, the poem can also be considered as a love letter to oneself – the whole world may have given up on you, but you had your back, kept cheering yourself on.
As the titles suggest, the poems point towards the cyclical nature of the emotions in our lives. We get hurt and scarred with wounds – some visible and some not. We may even fall into unhealthy coping mechanisms. However, it cannot be winter forever. The sun must come out and shine.
As winter moves out to make way for spring, our life too will slowly regain the colours that we lost. We will come across tunes that heal our hearts and fade our scars. Life has a crazy way of sneaking that tiny ray of hope even into the heaviest of the sorrowful hearts. Thus, we all will eventually find the love that we deserve – It’s not over until it’s over.
On the motivation to pen a collection of poems, the author said, “My English teacher in school identified my flair for writing and encouraged me. Inspired by Anne Frank, who found a best friend in her diary, I started writing poems on various topics in my diary. Once in a while, I used to publish excerpts from the diary on social media. The positive responses I got on social media gave me the courage to finally get my work published.”
