If It's Too Hot… Poem by Dr Vidya Hariharan

If it's too Hot…

A few years ago
A speaker said to me-
If it's too hot for you,
Leave the kitchen.

If I leave the kitchen,
Then who will cook?
You will hire another,
But what about me?

What if I have cooked
Only in that one kitchen?
What if only I know
Where the ingredients are kept?

How do I express the regret
Of tasting the food in that kitchen
And eating at no other table?
I know the stove knob shuts
when pushed extra hard.

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