"My Sister"

1. Tihar Last Year:

Last year carelessly I made a blunder,
On the day of Bhai Tika I phoned her.
We exchanged some sentences,
Then suddenly she lost her senses.

Later on I was told by my mom,
My sister starved without a crumb.
Not once, but year after year,
I have been ruining her Tihar.
*****************************

2. My Sister Called:

One late night my phone goes off,
Trrring trrring, trrring that’s enough.
“Hi, this is…”“ Guess who, boy,”
I was speechless with extreme joy.

“Hey brother, I tell you what?
Good news, take off your hat.
I already bought a Palpali cap,
So pretty, you’ll like it, chap.

Your old friends from up town,
Told me they are coming down.
To play vailo & deusi in our home,
But without you, they won’t come.

In your absence I have no joy,
Sometimes I wonder myself why.
Brother, do u think this year too?
Will there be a Tihar without you?

The mat on which you sat.
Has never been unwrapped.
But the marigold is still blooming,
In the hope you would be coming.

I have a lot of sorrows to share,
My goodness, bro, are you there?
Do you hear what I am saying?
It looks like you are betraying.”
****************************

3. I Replied:

Yet there was no energy in my voice,
I’d lied to her more than twice.
“But sister, you might keep the cap,
There may still be a long gap.

Thanks for saving flowers with pain,
Please cultivate new flowers again.
So they will be ready for next year,
I will be there to wipe your tear.

The first Tihar, I missed here,
Exams were coming very near.
Last year, everything was ok, but,
Be honest, couldn’t afford ticket.

This year all the problems I create,
These bills won’t let me breathe.
But, we’ll be together in next Tihar,
You dance and I will play guitar.”

It was so quiet on other side of line,
I pray to the god my sister is fine.
I heard “Uh” her last word,
Make her okay, please, lord.

I could hear only ‘sob’ ‘sob’,
Weaker ‘sobs’ and then a stop.
My heart’s broken, & face’s grim,
Fell asleep and began to dream.
***************************

4. My Dream:

In the dream, I saw my sister,
She looked like a bleak spinster.
She was in a local haat bazaar,
Sitting like a soldier who lost war.

When all ladies were buying flowers,
With happiness as high as towers.
What I saw there was hard to tell,
My dear sister was trying to sell.
The flowers which she cultivated,
Now, on sale, prices mitigated.

Crumbled away her castle of sand,
She had paper notes in her hand,
Which she got from selling jamara.
The scene’s rolling in a camera.

The cameraman asked her what,
She’d do with the money she got.
She said she has no important deeds,
Except to buy some flower seeds.

I stretched my arms to reach her.
Bang, I fell down under.
I woke up, found myself alone,
In a quiet room of my own.
*****************************

5. After Dream:

How sweet was my dream,
Much sweeter than ice-cream.
She has flower seeds to sow,
But I still have far to go.

She’s the sweetest person on earth,
So, she deserves my love by birth.
[And if I die before tonight,
I pray my (sister) will be alright].D.S

UFOKG
Auburn, AL, USA

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