That Boy Poem by Bashyam Narayanan

That boy

Evening around seven
I was in a temple
Chanting hymns and
Invoking gods

Normally I used to keep eyes closed
During the period of divine calling
This gives me a focus on
What I am chanting
Also I insulate myself
From the visual inputs

That day I happened to open my eyes
For a few seconds
I saw a boy standing quite in front
It took no time for me to realize
That this boy had some physical challenges

I continued my chanting
The boy's mother practically dragged him
And took him away

I was unable to close my eyes
But I was chanting
The boy has a gait
With both legs stretching apart
And he was also not able to keep
His hands straight and
His arms were held up with upward bends

The boy must be of three years
And my eyes followed him
I saw other children running around
Playing and making fun
But this boy was walking with difficulty
And he was not able to talk
I could make this out
As his mother understood him
By the signs he made
With his upheld arms
And untamed fingers

Though chanting
My mind was on this boy
What was that he was suffering from
That made him so physically
How his parents would have felt
At the time they came to know
That this boy would have this
Challenging and differently abled limbs

I was crying within
Hoping that my prayer would help him
Recover from this testing physique

Her mother went out of the temple
Allowing the boy to come out on his own
She appeared in the temple entry
With a two wheeler
By which time the boy was out on the road
She helped him to get up
On to the front leg space of the vehicle

I was happy to see the boy
Holding on to the handle bar
And she drove away

I was telling my gods that
If at all my prayers mean something
Let this boy become normal soon
Even if it is meant a miracle
Or let this boy gain enough physical
And emotional strengths to face the
Challenges ahead in life

And let his parents be blessed
With the power to help the child grow
Into a man of substance