Monday, April 11, 2011

I'm one of the sparrows


When was the last time
I had something to eat
Was it stale bread, a banana peel,
some paper or meat

It had been something
From the garbage I had stolen
They all taste the same
Once they're rotten & swollen

When I'd been in my village
I had it all
But the mouths were many
And the morsels were small

So I ran away,
& came to this town
But my hopes were shattered
My world came down

The city was ruthless
A sweltering dustbowl
Millions of bodies
Not one with a soul

They said I'd get food
If I just lift some bricks
Tough job for a girl
Who's hardly of six

In a day's work, my hands
were bruised & sore
And hurt so much
That it hurts no more

I had been promised
But I still wasn't fed
So I lived on the pavement
& begged for my bread

It's an easy life,
Only two things to fight
When the rabid dogs
& the cold, both bite

There are many just like me
Frail bodies, stone eyes
Ghosts of misfortune
Only just alive

We've all grown up
Though not in years
Lived all our nightmares
Faced all our fears

I've lost my childhood
But I hardly care
Because I know at my home
My brother gets my share

5 comments :

  1. Why so serious??
    nice though! :)

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  2. Hey Piyush.. Get serious with your writing.. . You can BE THERE :):) well the best part of this piece is that the protagonist is a female.. .so I liked your perspective of thinking from an angle of a different gender and 2. Had I not known you, I might have thought that you come from the same class as the girl.. appreciable that you can feel it without being a part of it.. A good piece.. :):) keep going

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  3. well compiled thoughts. keep it up :)

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  4. vey well presented ji bhaiya ji....awesomely put....sahi mein you should get serious with your writing..!
    :) :)

    ReplyDelete