Fear of Future

I played in streets

Jumped beyond compound walls,

Into the un-occupied empty land–

Filled with big and small trees

With birds and insects,

The whole streets’ crowd of kids

Joined together as a team to play

Knowing nothing about each other’s

Whereabouts:

High or low,

Tall or small,

Strong or week,

Rich or poor,

Matric or public school…

Together we ran and jumped,

Hither and thither all day.

To spend the excess leisure worthy,

I learned dance and music

Six or seven kids learned with me,

Together we participated in all school events,

We never gave a thought of lead roles,

We felt as a group in all our participation,

Still we had so much time

To play on the streets,

And swing under trees…

When I was a kid.

Now, the place I live is surrounded,

With multi-storied buildings!

There is no tree,

Except for crows,

No bird visits the place,

I don’t know who lives in the next door,

They don’t know who I am.

I see very few kids

On the way to their classes,

As race horses in parents’ vehicles.

Every day, everywhere and every-way

Competition is flaring up

With such greed for success and wealth,

And they are trained to compete,

If one horse misses the pace,

In the never-ending futile race:

No good-air to breathe,

No good-water to drink,

No good-shelter to sleep,

No good-food to eat,

As basic necessities’ quality lies

In the price tags they carry!

Everyday living has become a nightmare

To live in this chaotic hell.

Everything is open to everyone,

Now nothing can be hindered...

With heavy eyes,

With hi-tech games,

With computerized dreams,

In an air conditioned room,

Charm and innocence of childishness

Are lost in present-day children.

Guilt pricks me -

To think of the future generation,

A terrible terror creeps in,

Do I have any right to bring a new life,
Into this traumatic survival,
As I didn't preserve the world I enjoyed?