Connection Poem by Banu Dai

Children, he said
Were the only indicator
Of the passage of time

Otherwise
One thought
That time stood still
That one was young
That life still remained

Children he had
One
And life was with prosperity
Until
His wife died
His back bone curved
His limbs gave up
His skin wrinkled
His age showed up


He was not wanted
In the house or the heart
He was now a part
of a room
Right on the top
His son his only visitor
In a household full of flaws


The passageway cleared
To hold a bed
Flimsy mattress
Torn sheets
And
A ladder removed and placed
As per the
Arrival or departure
Of his lone friend

His son
His only connection
His blood relation
His only want
His only hope
To open up
His space under the pitched roof

The night was dark
His mood sinister
The attic as narrow
As his waist
His thoughts dimmed
As he heard footsteps
Of his son
Coming up the ladder


His hands searched,
Caressed
His limb
Resting as two sticks
By his bed
He waited eagerly
To see his son
A head peeped in
He smiled at him
And in an instant
There was a connect
A direct hit
With his limbs
Severing all connections.


Banu dai