Monday, September 8, 2014

DESERT BLOOMS

Embarrassed and aghast
two foreign tourists
either a couple or two love-birds
got stranded at
the bus station for one or two hours.
They saw a few passengers
with their baggage wearing worried looks.
Patience has its limits.
The stranded foreign tourists
walked towards
the passengers stranded at the bus station
and with pleading eyes
inquired one of them
who couldn’t make out head or tail of
what they were talking looking askance.
On listening to their inquiry
one among the passengers
came forward and explained to them:
‘It is strike today across the State, friends
vehicles are kept off the roads
banks, hotels, business establishments
all not functioning’.
‘What for the strike?’ both were asking in a chorus.
Their eyes widened
with question marks flashing across their faces.
Looking at each other
looking alarmed
they stood like statues.
‘Strange are the ways of our land.
If the leader of a party or union
calls for a strike
even for a minor reason
their supporters get ready
and order the establishments
to down their shutters, otherwise face
the consequences,
and force the vehicles not to ply’.
-He was laughing behind the façade of sadness.
After hours both of them got down
and walked down the
lengthy road reminding one of a desert.
The ‘abandoned’ street lay melting
under the fire-spitting sun.
‘Athithi Devo Bhava’ (treat your guests as gods) –
-each one roared into a
laughter behind which was pain and sorrow.
‘I feel my stomach
has evolved into a furnace’ -
though laughing,
one was seen breaking out
into a roar of laughter.
‘Mine too’ – the other
one responded

that too burst out laughing loudly…

No comments: