I searched for happiness in the skies and in the seas,

In the stars and on the moon,

High above the mountains and deep down the valleys.

I ran in the cities and through the towns,

In the lonely nights and the crowded days,

Through the woods I went searching and searching

But I could not find it anywhere

Suddenly I stopped in my tracks,

Looking within

I found happiness lurking there.

— Shweta Dixit, +1 (Medical),
Girls School, Dharamshala

My mother is very sweet,

She gives me good things to eat;

To fill my tummy,

She makes food very yummy;

She helps in our chores,

And is very sure;

My mother is very sweet,

She gives me good things to eat,

She is a punctual lady,

And keeps tea in a caddy;

She does her work on her own,

And often attends to the phone,

My mother is very sweet,

She gives me good things to eat.

I am living poetry,

The gentle breeze.

The swaying trees.

The music of streams.

The majesty of mountains.

The depth of oceans.

The grandeur of forests.

The rage of volcanoes.

The heave of quakes.

The terror of typhoons.

Be it the North East, Orissa,

Gujarat or Kashmir;

I cry when my children suffer.

I am mother India.

— Pankhuri Wadehra, Class X-F,
Kundan Vidya Mandir, Ludhiana