Oh my Mother,
Mother Sea
how much
delighted am I here
when I come
near you
early in the
morning?
Whenever I throw
my
glances at
you,
I recall my
mother residing in a
small hamlet
in the far
away land, Kerala.
You are here
to
compensate my
Mother’s absence,
Oh my Mother,
my Mother
sea
how
delighted I stand
before you?
Here,
in between
your
infinity
and
Oberoi-Trident
you can see
I am
standing here
at the
Marine Drive
beside a
pile of
tender
coconuts.
Wearing my
usual lungi,
banyan and a
towel tied
around my
head
with a
razor-sharp knife
in my hand
which blazes like the sun
I am here.
In the
morning
to enjoy
your infinite beauty
come morning
walkers
from far
away places
walking from
Nariman Point
to Chowpathi
and vice-versa
several
times.
Many in
droves, twos and
singly
walk in
front of me
many come to
a halt near me
with that
familiar wish, ‘Hai’,
I return the
wish with a smile with all humility.
Among the walkers
are
white men
and women
Arabs and
Mumbaikars
familiar faces
galore,
they need
cool, pure, fresh
and sweet
tender
coconut
elixir.
I provide
them the elixir by chopping off
the top of
the tender coconut
and a straw
put inside
they enjoy
the drink and hand over charges.
Tourists
white men, women
and
Arabs never
demand balance
the bonanza I
get
once in a
while.
Oh, my
Mother
my Mother
Sea
how much
delighted am I here
to be beside
you
you always
take care
to stroke my
hairs and
cool my body
with your elongated hands
of winds.
You know
I came by
your side
when I was
only twenty,
since then I
am here
now that I am
forty
you see
twenty years
have gone
I have
become part and parcel
of you and
this beautiful city.
During
leisure time
we engage in
silent conversation
Mother,
with all
your blessings
I do a brisk
business here.
You know
how much
pain I feel
the moment I
bid good bye
to you for
the day
late into
the night?
Oh my Mother
my Mother
Sea
how much
delighted am I here?
Words fail
me Mother
Oh my Mother
a group is coming
to me
after giving
them
pure, cool, fresh,
sweet elixir
we can pick up
the thread
of our
conversation, from where
we left……
No comments:
Post a Comment