NIGĪNA-E-GULĀBĪ
Tired of the burning red, I thought this pink was right.
گردن صراحی میں ہار تھا
اس میں چمکتا ہوا نگینہ بھی
رنگ لال سے تنگ آ کے
سوچا گلابی نگینہ ہے یہی
A necklace on the flagon's neck, a glowing gem set bright; tired of the burning red, I thought this pink was right.
THE RED
The arch across the top begins in deep red. It cools into orange and peach as it moves, and the grain of the wood shows through every stroke of colour. It is the colour of a feeling that has burned for a long time. Anyone who has felt it knows how tiring it gets.
THE GEM
At the center, a diamond is carved into the wood. A small square sits inside it, and inside that square is another diamond, drawn in soft pink. The eye goes there first. The poem says the heart was weary of red and decided this pink gem was the one. The piece does not say whether that is truth or comfort. It only shows the moment of choosing.
THE NECK
A slender green ribbon rises through the arch like the neck of a flagon, with a small teal tip at the top. Below it, angled shapes sit like a necklace, and a pink crescent curls beside them. The neck is graceful and the jewel is bright. Something delicate has been dressed up beautifully, and the heart is looking at it.
THE FRAME
Deep triangular cuts run around the border and catch the light differently from every side. Inside, the shapes are carved at different depths, so a shadow gathers along every edge. A green square within a yellow square within a pink square sits on the right, and a green and yellow ribbon runs along the base. The frame holds everything in place.
THE WOOD
The piece is carved from dark natural wood, and the grain shows through the stain. The colours were laid in with a light hand. Where the wood is left bare, it stays dark and quiet, and it makes the pinks and greens glow.
THE FINAL THOUGHT
Sometimes we do not find peace. We choose it. After enough red, a soft pink looks like the answer, and perhaps it is.
SaifX Ebonform · 2026
