Connemara Poem by Daniel Trevelyn Joseph

Here I am in Chennai Connemara
Having coffee after breakfast,
Pulling out the hotel stationery
To record a poem which was born
Moments ago when I walked the wet lawns
Looking for the mongooses
Seen yesterday.

Today looked up the same tree
For a moment could not see dragon-flies
Then my eyes took them in around same tree-top
Never understood the reason why they choose
A particular tree and foliage.
It used to be in September or October earlier
Now it is December and I see them:
The progression of these cycles
Is interesting to watch.

These dragonflies are the helicopters
Of the 21st century!
See how they speed up,
Take a sharp u-turn
And become part of the heavy
Arerial traffic without a single copy,
Regulating them, and yet
No accidents, no road rage.

It had rained all night
And Dotu warned me
Not to go for a walk
But I did and as soon as I
Stepped out, I slipped a bit.
Was worried could fall
And hurt myself.

Years ago I was at one end
Of the spectrum of conformance,
Meaning didnt care what others did
Or thought: I did my own
Now I ask my wife or daughter
And if they say No or Not now, I refrain
Hence I could not go for a swim
In the blue rectangle I see
From the breakfast table outside -
Part of the price I pay
For my brain haemorrhage
Three months ago.
As they discharged me from hospital,
They said, No swimming
For six months. They said so
Because I had two seizures
While in ICU on the second day!
But I do miss the joy of getting
Into the pool at Connemara,
Recalling the joy of having splashed about
There many times before, alas!