Social Outings Poem by Aparna Chatterjee

Have you realised
That the more
You go for
Social outings
The more you
Increase your
Monthly spendings
On costly outfits
Flamboyant recipes
Expensive gifts -
Just to impress
Each other
As per society's
Askings -
Or you get
Left out -
By the social strata.

Kitty parties
Hen parties
Stag parties
Bachelor parties
Couple parties…
The list of these
Events is endless.

If you
Want to keep
Climbing up
The social ladder
And keep maintaining
Your position
Up the ladder,
You can keep
Going to these
Social outings,
To impress
Each other,
And outdo
The other's
Cravings -
For the best attention,
Huge monthly
Expenses, no matter.

But I've
Taken myself
Out of this trap.

I've
Minimised
My social
Get-togethers
As I don't want
To be a part of this
Rat-race
Which makes me
Increase my
Daily expenses
And warrants my
Thought processes
To worry about
What to wear,
Why to wear,
How to wear,
What to give,
Why to give,
How to give
For society to
Tell me - yes,
This is the
Trendiest
Way to live!

Might as well
Focus on my poetry
As I've realised
That all these
Materialistic
Gimmicks -
Take me away
From my poetry
And I would
Rather
Think of
What to write
How to write
Why to write
Instead of
Brooding over
The what...s,
Why…s
And how…s
Of pleasing the
Whims and fancies
Of this pompous
Society.