Delhi Nights! ! ! Poem by Debasish Mishra

In the midnight
An irate dog barks fervently
At the innocuous watchman
Weakened by the growth of age.
He carries a gaunt body,
Little better than a scare crow.
But still he whistles with his flappy cheeks
Assuring the dwellers
Or, may be, himself.

A little later
Some unknown man.......Obviously old,
Coughs copiously...
As if clearing his throat
Or disturbing the silence.
He repeats it every night,
Almost at the same time,
Reminding the time
To those who remain lost in their thoughts.

And I -
Anxiously absorb the various sounds
Floating in the aura-
The whistle of the watchman,
The barking of the dog,
The oldman's cough-
That stab the silence of my room.
These nice noises fill my night
As if they are an indespensable part
Of my daily routine,
Which I, simply, cannot escape...