Amlanjyoti Goswami
Evening descends on the city
At the barricades, a cop whispered yes
Something had gone wrong
But no one was saying anything.
Things were hushed into sunset
The streets emptying.
We walked to and fro, hoping to find a clue
What ailed the city this evening
The birds swerving past darkness
The empty quiet deafening.
We walked a little more, on the bare street
Deserted of time.
It was hard to believe–these were the same streets
Where we bustled all day.
More barricades awaited us, gun toting
But the cops weren’t saying anything.
A thought did cross me–and then I–quickly shushed it
Before it was born in my mouth.
I asked you: Why are we walking here?
Let’s go elsewhere–and check out what’s happening.
But we knew in our heart of hearts
The same scene would play out there.
We reached the metro stop
Where a Good Samaritan showed us the way
Told us which train was going where.
We asked him if he wanted tea
But he said, no, today was not the day.
This made us believe that trains run on time
Even on a day like this.
A day of reckoning–everyone knew–would come one day
But no one expected today.
When it came, no one knew what to do.
Everyone took shelter in their homes
For fear of what the city could bring
What it could break into.
Only we remained, endless wanderers
Prowling the empty streets and stations
Looking to find–what was inside our hearts
The corridors of the mind
Where things went on as before
As if nothing had happened.