Climb To Claim! Poem by Veeraiyah Subbulakshmi

modern human at the markets,
want to get everything quicker,
the wrapped up delicious imported fruits,
look clean with no holes as the local apples,
the oranges gone through bathing process,
to be exported, the juicy fruits of,
rambuttan, Durians, Mangoes and bananas,
mostly organic and visited by their friends,
the pest and plucked by human, painfully bitten,
ask the kid where she gets the mango from,
she may say 'from the stores', not knowing hardship,
Let every kid learn the truth,
nothing comes easier on their plates.

I had climbed the trees of various textures,
When I was young, I was close to the nature,
Whenever I went back home for holidays,
Pesticides not around to declare mayday,
For insects, mollusk and escaped crustaceans,
Train like millipede with red and black hues,
Venomous Centipedes found below moist heaps,
Sweet mangoes invite ants of all sizes,
Jackfruits are the good hosts to bees and flies,
Careful and cautious, I aimed to pick up the fruit,
Though very high for my body that was too petite,
Many times bitten mercilessly to have swelling heart,
A group of drunken bees arrived to make me a drunk,
tolerance kept me awake to climb to the top,
Plucked those fruits victoriously without dropping,
Returned to show my people for them to have,
The taste of sweet success that is hidden,
not far away from our illusionized vision.
the victory acquired through hardship,
appreciated for ever, to reach higher height.