Nostalgia (From Jallopy To Limousine) Poem by U Win Kyi

After I passed the University entrance exam,
my dream of becoming a degree holder began.
Going to Uni for weekday class,
actually it was not an easy task,
always packed like sardine on the bus,
because I had no other choice,
I had to commute for 1 hour ride.
In summer, sweltering hot and drenching sweat were never nice.
In monsoon, the rain was so relentless,
so down-pouring, so wet.
The biting chilly wind of winter,
with chattering of teeth I had to endure,
at the bus-stand without shelter.

Most of the the times, the bus was so crowded and overflowed,
in order to get onto it, I had to elbow,
to the door-rail with a strong grip, I had to hold.
The bus had no door to close as it was so old.
I had to stand on the door-step,
with my book bag dangling,
so daring a stunt that the on-lookers held their breath,
as my longyi, in the air, fluttering.
If I were lucky,
I could find a seat empty,
but the chance were so slim and rarely.
The bus's abrupt stop and sudden swerve,
swaying the passengers forward and backward, right and left,
causing me fall and bump,
and on the head, sustaining a big, painful and swollen lump.
Only when I got to my destination, did I breathed a deep sigh,
then I realised that I was still alive and not yet die.
I had been riding the bus for 4 years,
as if death were closing very near.
In my Uni life, the hardest part was daily ride of 20 miles,
because it was not a ride of joy,
so tired that my face was almost wry,
that I could not have a bit of smile,
moving along the route, pot-holed, dusty and bumpy,
on the old out-dated jallopy.
Thinking back of it would send a shiver down the spine,
but I had no way to whine,
because in my pocket was only a little piece of dime.

That had passed the time of 3 decades,
but in my mind it would never fade.
Strolling along the memory lane,
the images are still vivid and all the same.
But it was worth riding,
it was worth studying,
because obtaining a degree was what I was dying.

As I am so engrossed in nostalgic feeling,
my chauffeur opens the door of limousine,
' Sir, Sir' as he is calling,
the CEO's are welcoming,
for the CHAIRMAN to begin,
the VIP meeting,