Stillness, pressing its feelers
On every human being, disregarding
Age, metier, disposition, position.
Throttling the gay rhythm of our lives,
Like the slow purge of virulence that
Has been inflicting meditated, painful deaths.
Just like a motion picture, when the reel is faulty.
One day teeming with life and activity,
The next abruptly brought to close, panic
Flooding the Earth, uncertainty gripping
Every nation, caste, sect, class.
As we stood, hand in hand, only metaphorically,
A fresh light illuminated our lives, as a quest for
Solidarity, unity, surpassed our regular worldly desires.
So what if this is a war, but which war could have brought
The world on the same stage more than this one?
It is a war that will avert real wars in the future.
A battle that will forge mutual respect and trust,
Curtailing ill-founded sentiments that were brewing,
Now forced to beat a hasty retreat, and review
The concerns and energies that humankind actually needs.
What a Curate's Egg this situation is,
Impaling on me the deepest disdain for it,
But at the same time, touching a part of my heart
That willed to be roused, a wish to forgive.
A wish to forget and be at peace.
Moored indoors, not spoiled for choices,
I took a few deep breaths, and did whatever I could,
Without venturing out, I felt the beats of the things I loved,
Sans the all-too-familiar pangs of regret and
The rings of more inviting things to do, a bucket list to redeem,
I had been walking through but a breathless dream!
Only now, beginning to catch my breath, gather the skipped beats
Of my heart, and restore the bruised pieces to normalcy.
I learnt how expensive gratitude was as news bulletins
Flashed reports of those stranded, homeless
And it dawned on me that if we shed some of our comforts
Our feathers in a straw cap, we may save some straws from
Being weathered away. So much that we had was redundant,
But I sensed that all that is left, all forces deployed,
Is also too much for us privileged.
I understood that overbearing reports were best ignored,
What I can't change becomes some frivolous indulgence!
So I focused on the several windows of opportunity
That I had all the power to transform into doors on better days.
Learning had always been unhindered,
But today it would be free too.
Free from disconcerting thoughts of doing too much.
The lifelong learner was aroused, I resumed
Forgotten ventures, took on unfamiliar ones,
And let my second-nature-pursuits sing along.
How dependent are we, and yet we need not be,
How poorly are we equipped to avert that single strain
That can rip away the band of courage that holds us together?
We are not, we are a strong species like any other.
I have now acknowledged that we need each other,
Only as much as we need ourselves; we are as strong,
As the strength that we radiate.
The thought that we have each other
Has cushioned us in every solitary ramble,
Every day which seemed to be a gamble,
But which most of us played well, and very few lost.
Who in the world will pledge to promise
That they have seen us through difficult times, except
Those people there who are etched in the backdrop
Of our marvelous stage-plays to the world.
We claim so much, we masquerade
But only those who have been polishing our claims
In the background, can see through our charade.
And now it's all gone.
All that remains is those people who fit into your lives
Like the unobtrusive corner pieces of a jigsaw,
Apart, still together, as the others drift away.
Oh, work would never give us breathers to see
What we were doing for each other.
But now that's plain.
And only a poet I may be, and an artist you, now
Conjuring works of hope to keep ourselves together.
Musicians creating poignant tunes to carry despair away with,
But watch us all come together, and tell each other,
That self-help is service, commend the world on serving one another.
The real and the reel have never seemed as distinct,
As the present day when we have thousands to thank,
For braving it out in real service, risking self-care
To put their character to the test, and working unflinchingly.
Their layman's lives are a thing of the past,
As they don their work clothes and bear the brunt
Of the watching world's censures.
Oh, we bystanders, some thank, some crib, some laugh.
While the multiple armies of crisis put their lives on line.
Though I don't know how to say it, I do know that I thank them
Whenever I thank God that I am alive.
Oh, Covid-19,
You have stayed long and unveiled
The masks that we don.
Your lessons will not be forgotten,
You will leave us, finding us
Stronger, braver, more composed
United, improved, more sensible,
Than any other force that has
Taken our leave before.
On every human being, disregarding
Age, metier, disposition, position.
Throttling the gay rhythm of our lives,
Like the slow purge of virulence that
Has been inflicting meditated, painful deaths.
Just like a motion picture, when the reel is faulty.
One day teeming with life and activity,
The next abruptly brought to close, panic
Flooding the Earth, uncertainty gripping
Every nation, caste, sect, class.
As we stood, hand in hand, only metaphorically,
A fresh light illuminated our lives, as a quest for
Solidarity, unity, surpassed our regular worldly desires.
So what if this is a war, but which war could have brought
The world on the same stage more than this one?
It is a war that will avert real wars in the future.
A battle that will forge mutual respect and trust,
Curtailing ill-founded sentiments that were brewing,
Now forced to beat a hasty retreat, and review
The concerns and energies that humankind actually needs.
What a Curate's Egg this situation is,
Impaling on me the deepest disdain for it,
But at the same time, touching a part of my heart
That willed to be roused, a wish to forgive.
A wish to forget and be at peace.
Moored indoors, not spoiled for choices,
I took a few deep breaths, and did whatever I could,
Without venturing out, I felt the beats of the things I loved,
Sans the all-too-familiar pangs of regret and
The rings of more inviting things to do, a bucket list to redeem,
I had been walking through but a breathless dream!
Only now, beginning to catch my breath, gather the skipped beats
Of my heart, and restore the bruised pieces to normalcy.
I learnt how expensive gratitude was as news bulletins
Flashed reports of those stranded, homeless
And it dawned on me that if we shed some of our comforts
Our feathers in a straw cap, we may save some straws from
Being weathered away. So much that we had was redundant,
But I sensed that all that is left, all forces deployed,
Is also too much for us privileged.
I understood that overbearing reports were best ignored,
What I can't change becomes some frivolous indulgence!
So I focused on the several windows of opportunity
That I had all the power to transform into doors on better days.
Learning had always been unhindered,
But today it would be free too.
Free from disconcerting thoughts of doing too much.
The lifelong learner was aroused, I resumed
Forgotten ventures, took on unfamiliar ones,
And let my second-nature-pursuits sing along.
How dependent are we, and yet we need not be,
How poorly are we equipped to avert that single strain
That can rip away the band of courage that holds us together?
We are not, we are a strong species like any other.
I have now acknowledged that we need each other,
Only as much as we need ourselves; we are as strong,
As the strength that we radiate.
The thought that we have each other
Has cushioned us in every solitary ramble,
Every day which seemed to be a gamble,
But which most of us played well, and very few lost.
Who in the world will pledge to promise
That they have seen us through difficult times, except
Those people there who are etched in the backdrop
Of our marvelous stage-plays to the world.
We claim so much, we masquerade
But only those who have been polishing our claims
In the background, can see through our charade.
And now it's all gone.
All that remains is those people who fit into your lives
Like the unobtrusive corner pieces of a jigsaw,
Apart, still together, as the others drift away.
Oh, work would never give us breathers to see
What we were doing for each other.
But now that's plain.
And only a poet I may be, and an artist you, now
Conjuring works of hope to keep ourselves together.
Musicians creating poignant tunes to carry despair away with,
But watch us all come together, and tell each other,
That self-help is service, commend the world on serving one another.
The real and the reel have never seemed as distinct,
As the present day when we have thousands to thank,
For braving it out in real service, risking self-care
To put their character to the test, and working unflinchingly.
Their layman's lives are a thing of the past,
As they don their work clothes and bear the brunt
Of the watching world's censures.
Oh, we bystanders, some thank, some crib, some laugh.
While the multiple armies of crisis put their lives on line.
Though I don't know how to say it, I do know that I thank them
Whenever I thank God that I am alive.
Oh, Covid-19,
You have stayed long and unveiled
The masks that we don.
Your lessons will not be forgotten,
You will leave us, finding us
Stronger, braver, more composed
United, improved, more sensible,
Than any other force that has
Taken our leave before.
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