Thursday 6 November 2014

My Pet

Since childhood I wanted a nice pet
But luck never favoured me much

As a kid I played with uncle's dog
A huge Alsatian but it was gentle

The poor creature with glorious fur
Kolkata heat killed it way too soon

My aunt used to have a lovely white cat
It was abandoned - when her baby born

Later my friend Geetu saved two squirrels
We nurtured with care, but they withered

Sad was the day we dug their tiny graves
And forsake them to mother earth's care

Years later I started staying on my own
A little white kitten had come to my door

I was too nervous to let it in my home
Not sure if I could care for it enough

The little kitten bit my toe and then left
For days I searched never found again

Now I feed biscuits to a dog near my office
It wags its tail, but my guilt just never fades

But the only pet I have been successful with
Is the bonsai bamboo plant in a glass bowl

Sunlight and water is all it demands
It's grown greener even while I forget

I never cared to give the plant any name
Why would a plant care for such identity

It could have been much different a lifetime ago
Was it a tree and I, a bird sheltered in branches?

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