An Odd Adventure.... Poem by PARTHA SARATHI PAUL

Years back when flood paid a ritual visit
to our low lying area, amidst common suffering
I had a chance to have a unique adventure!
The swamp nearby looked a makeshift sea.
I had the first boat ride in the grey water body!
The vision around was not at all inviting;
The sky was watching us with a sulky face.
The oar-boy was my distant neighbor.
He was wielding a thin bamboo pole quite adeptly
in the deep dirty water to make the boat go ahead.
While passing by the heads of the jute plants jutted out
from the watery clutch of the flood water, a shiver
ran down my backbone at the dreadful sight of many snakes
desperately cuddling up to the protruded jute heads.
Our boat skirted past this fearful stretch and it was more horrible
to be in the middle of huge rains pumped known-unknown sea!
I now told him in rather feeble voice that we better be back...
During the return the land dotted with half-drowned houses
and some daring tree tops made the sight very pity.
I shall never forget this kind of odd adventure.