Woman Scientist Retiring,
Madam check everything if your purse,
Your important documents are in place with you,
Kindly check everything!
My dear scientist madam,
If something is left in lab/office?

Scientist madam stood for a while—–,
She remembered when she joined the lab,
Oh ! she had 3 months old daughter,
Leaving her with babysitter –anxiety/uncertainty surrounding her,
Are being repeated at this time of retirement madam PA.

What is there to be left—-
Which is left—-
Whole life I have spent around this lab,
Building lab, procuring state of art apparatus for my respected students,
Planning experiments, interpreting observations,
Having pleasure when unique result experimental are seen around,
Publishing results in scientific journals,
Anxiety of obscure failure/success,
Were all mine madam PA!

What all is left– you are helping me,
In searching that madam PA,
Thank you very much for all the help,
Nothing is left madam PA,
What everything left——-,
Will always remain in my memories, with me.

I will treasure them whole life madam PA!

By Sukarma Rani Thareja, Alumnus IIT-K-1986
Kanpur, India

Featured image credit: National Cancer Institute on Unsplash