VICE-VERSA

He was working hard, he was earning lots

He worked harder, he earned lots more.

             Morning flights and late night files had meaning to him

Delights and indulgence didn’t.

He was earning lots, he wanted more,

He worked hard; he wished he could work harder.

His house was a place to sleep in

Its inhabitants – a mere existence.

And then he had a holiday

Sudden, abrupt….unwanted.

He didn’t know what to do with it

Just like a dress, long-worn when it doesn’t fit.

He wanted back his work; he wished he had his files.

A guest in his house – he roamed

Switching on the lights instead of the fan

Searching for food amongst leftovers

When he opened that cupboard;

And childhood tumbled out.

Bright covers, dash of colors, glitter,

A zooming hero there, a cute squirrel here:

But a deep trench cut across their faces -

And deep into their bodies

                         Making the pages crumble as fingers endeavored to turn.

He looked into those pages trying to read that eaten-up word, recognize that devoured face.

How he wished them to be alive again, how he wished to be back to life again

He wanted …he wanted, what he wished

Ah! But he wished he had wanted.

SOUVIK GHOSH