India In Winter! Poem by PARTHA SARATHI PAUL

In a tropical land like ours
days and hours on the eve of
a new year and happy Christmas
though transitory offer the blessed cool air
and a kind relief from scorching, sweltering days.
the senile, shivering stage of an year
wrapped in warm clothes drinks lots of
parting rituals and festive country liquor!
like the last smoldering trace of a bonfire
as the trekkers` toil consummates in boisterous cheers
the dense fog wet dull morns bask in final mirth warmth.

the northerly part is largely snow capped white
Dal lake feels molten ice and bright tulips yawn in sleep!
the capital of the mother of the Veda
wears a weird cover of air; too hot in summer
and too cold in every winter like a nearby desert brother!
when the mercury plummets whimsically deep down
evening turns night and the deeper night delays the next sun-rise.

the too tender and too worn-out bones
shiver in chill blow tremor!
crouched figures feebly gnash hard teeth inside steaming mouths!
kitchen-gardens show off the freshest verdure
thus winter like a moody custodian does peculiarly nurture
and the people here both rejoice at yearly outing or picnic
and so many others, the poor, more often they do suffer.
winter is both a blessing and a curse to the masses here.