And now for our prompt (optional, as always). This is one that we’ve used before, but one test of a good prompt is that you can come back to it! For this prompt, you will need to fill out, in five minutes or less, the following “Almanac Questionnaire.” Then, use your responses as to basis for a poem.
The longing is sudden and intense
made more acute by the greying skies
as well as the letter of a childhood friend
which I found tucked in the folds of my old school dress
during an intense bout of cleaning
I tell my beloved I must have jhalmuri*, now!
he shakes his head at my childish request
tells me to look out into the empty street
lined with stern, sentry like lampposts
not even a stray dog is visible from my window
feeling small and woebegone I sit there
when a sudden downpour pelts me
taking me back to the red-bricked maternal childhood home
where I would stand in the courtyard in a cotton slip
under the large gulmohar tree
and catch the petals caressed raindrops
on my tongue
shivering with fever at night
I would insist grandma tell me
the story of prince charming again
as she applied warm oil on my feet
now in this huge metro, confined in a thousand square foot
can’t even walk to the cornershop
down the alley for groceries!
the borders all around, completely sealed
with a sigh I get up, saving my tears for later
pick my pen then put it down
thoughts too jumbled up to flow with ink
the newspaper lies neglected in a corner
for all it does is reduce people to numbers
and propagate theories of megalomaniac leaders
as well as lab-made diseases
a hot cuppa is thrust in my hand with a pat on my back
and the tears flow unbidden
will I be able to see my mom soon
will we rise Phoenix like
or crumble like the ancient fort of my city
suddenly the graffiti on the subway flashes across my eyes
“You are not alone!”
*jhalmuri : a spicy, savoury snack made with puffed rice and vegetables. Watch it here.
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