By RK Lakhi Kant
A strange tree
The top half was dry to the core
Being a euclyptus the branches
Were all pointing up, stretching
To the limits toward a clear sky
The bottom half had green leaves
And usual branches
A crow perched on a top half branch
Perfectly blended with the dry scene –
The heat from the late summer sky,
The dry banches only existing
Without any liveliness
And the crow, hardly considered
A bird of any worth outside of it`s group.
On the Metro, surveying from
The transparent windows and doors,
Enjoying a vantage view of the
Greenery and human settlements
Down at the ground level
Like an uninvited guest,
Which the crow is, at parks
Where men gather with eatables
And the crows wait impatiently
To feed on the leftovers,
“I say, `O, if only I could relax and walk
In these greens!` `O, if only I had
A house like those ones among the greens.` ”
I find these missing in life
Like many fellow commuters
The inner self urges me on
But I am resourceless in life
Shunned, detested, chased away
Not a flighty bird, never taught
To enjoy, suffering in foolishness
But the last time I went to Manipur
I saw a couple of ravens sometimes
Flying around some large and old
Mango trees. My father told me
There were many crows in his time
At the same grove which was then
A forest. It was certainly a nostalgic
Sight, especially when you
Are used to to the crowing and ruckus
Created by crows in places like
Delhi where they are in good numbers
Whoever would think of missing
The crows, but that`s what happened.
Nature – abundant, beautiful, and
Calm – you have a place in the
Heart for every being
Many times in the moments of my
Passing life I survey meaninglessly
Like the crow on the euclyptus
And find out that I too,
Like the crow, am a part of
Nature`s plan, giving me reason
To live as I please, no matter
How strict the rules men devise.
