Buttons I Like, Not Fasteners Poem by Aniruddha Pathak

Fig leaf was all there was in times of yore,
Precarious, and held in place by hand
In Eden Garden as goes ancient lore,
Adam and Eve, sole two souls in all land.

Countless years passed, came some sort of raiment,
A sheet— to be wrapped much like a blanket,
And fashion had found no firm firmament,
This went on for thousand moons without let.

All fastening was matter but of knots,
Life at its simplest was, few knots and ties,
A Spartan life free from clutters and clots,
Necessities when but from bare did rise.

Life a trim fit, tailored to fit the size,
And tied on to contours thanks a few straps,
And fasteners took ages to devise,
Well, it was a sea change from body wraps.

Yet, centuries passed ere any change came,
Mankind being busy with survival,
And fashion still was a shy frugal dame,
But change a child is of time perpetual.

And man invented ah— what else, buttons—
To fasten garments at every odd place,
And soon there were buttons in tens of tonnes,
O of countless kinds, each with a new face.

This I'd think was the first fashion statement,
Buttons could boast more than straps ever did,
And free of malfunction at odd moment,
Ah buttons everywhere, need be or greed.

Then came zip fasteners from luggage end,
Accessories, invading man's trousers,
But buttons nigh like a long lost school friend—
Faithful— free were from glitches getting worse.

Fasteners to me look like windows tucked,
Secured sealed whence no fresh air enter can,
Whilst flexible buttons never get stuck,
And always score like a faithful hand fan.

I've seen zips getting stuck at awkward time
And place, and yet there's nary a way out,
Zips came on to the scene, reason nor rhyme,
But fashion needs no reason for its clout.

A fastener still when fails to function,
A fig-leaf of hands an expose to shun!
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Musings | 09.07.11 |