Tell Me A Tale Poem by Prathibha Nandakumar

Tell me a tale
Let there be seven seas, thunderstorms,
fire-spitting dragons in it.
Let there be a pearl-eating pet parrot
mocking his demon master
Let there be a trouble at every step
an unending maze of hurdles, no way out
I know all that and I am not scared.
All such tales end with a
living happily ever after.


Tell me a tale
of the breathtaking hugs
under the Neem trees
where dreams turn into his promises

Tell me a tale
that makes me howl and cry
like a wounded animal
at the end of which
they come together
like lost children
finding each other by chance

Once upon a time
there lived a princess
and the washer boy
was in love with her...

such tales are rarely fasle.