I am the old dog, lean lean and frail,
Driven away by his master –
One harsh wintry eve; amid
the lashing wrath of snow and hail …..
Down the dusty pavement ;
By some darkling road forlorn;
In dreary hush of silence,
I wander aimless dusk to morn.
My humblest abode, this, or –
The ideal payback perhaps, for
the service age-old, spanning night and day:
Choose to call it whatever you may;
Good refuge yet has served …..
Far beyond this
‘genteel’ world of mortal disloyalty.
More like a broken man,
wretched in body, and –
Impaired in soul;
A mere ghost, this present ‘I’
as though, of my former self worthwhile;
Am now but left to sigh and even laugh
at times, thinking
of my very existence ……
A laugh so sarcastic!
For fraught in eternal pangs
it is, of complaints useless, laments vain –
Which repressed years through thralldom have acquired,
Buried deep, unknown to all,
In morbid realms of heart.
‘Tis when they come to mind –
Those blooming heydays of life’s faded Spring:
Sweet moments tranquil, which the by-gone past,
Vouchsafed much once in ample bounty
For me to now recall –
These present days of idle loneliness.....
One way thus, I feel thankful at times:
After all, there’s something worth at least,
Wherewith I can stagger vainly forth,
Down the crimson lane of fleeting dusk ……
Even if mere memories - lost they be,
Wrinkled years have somewhere solace seeked.....
This poem has not been translated into any other language yet.
I would like to translate this poem
my style, free and not so rigid with all the rhymes which i am not accustomed to, Save myself much time in composing. Your first attempt is marvelous! And the thoughtful, thourough self analysis and sentiment is exquisite! I enjoy very much! Thank you.