When the cat is away,
The mice rejoice and play.
Freedom to relax and to sleep,
Only play, no work please.
...
To be old is to be mature, soft and ripe,
To be sure, supple, satiated and satisfied.
To be old is to be calm, quiet and content,
To be full of everything good, rich and enduring.
...
Our dear Lord in Heaven,
Listen to this prayer of mine.
My earnest plea, if not heard,
May shake my faith in the Divine.
...
Friends are many
But true friends are few
I treasure your friendship
As a true friend ought to do
...
Gods sit idly on the platform
on which they were stationed
No one in my family looks at them
They are there for the elders,
...
My children, you are all grown up,
And walk tall with ease and confidence.
I am and I was, as I was long before,
Change for me meant no change at all.
...
Five nights have passed since I saw you last,
And still the gloomy face haunts me,
Unresolved, the question weighs dully on me,
And I ask what all this really means.
...
If you have taken refuge
In someone’s care for your incapacities,
If you have sought a friend’s shoulder
To support your feeble feet,
...
The Boss Is Away
When the cat is away,
The mice rejoice and play.
Freedom to relax and to sleep,
Only play, no work please.
Free to gossip, free to loiter,
Tell everyone it’s time to fritter.
No urgency, no hurry, no tension,
Everything must wait,
As long as you want to.
Personal work, personal problems,
Are more important folks.
So while the boss is away,
No checks, no supervision,
We are our own bosses.
Work at will or have a holiday,
Tea, coffee, merriment all day.
Let the workaholics slog and say,
Hard work, sincerity, honesty.
When the boss comes let’s see,
Whether to work or shirk,
Today is the day to rejoice,
Tomorrow will be a different day,
So be it.
Good poems. Long since we met.