Sheep

I am a fluffy ewe

That like a cloud loves traversing

Over the hillside and the dale

Winning some and losing few 
friends on the way.

Some call me wanderer

That makes me ponder

In life am I meant to

In one place stay?

The Coin Games

On the way to the Beyt Dwarka temple, Gujarat we came across these young lads whom we initially thought were swimming in the cold waters of the Gulf of Kutch to beat the summer heat.

But on observing closely and speaking to a few of them, we came to know that swimming in the dirty waters helped them earn their livelihood !

The kids asked the passing tourists to throw coins in this dingy canal and would then jump in the water to take them out from the bed. Given that the kids didn't want to collect the coins at a place while swimming to fetch more, for the fear of being stolen by others, they stuffed the coins in their mouths to the extend of almost choking themselves.

The passerby were amused by this activity and would keep shelling coins and betting on which lad would take out the coins next. While tourists enjoyed betting, these young lads shivered in the cold waters and  often fought and argued over a dime. I felt really sad for these kids !

Wish these street urchins can be educated and taught another way to earn their livelihood!

One of the kid showed us that he could climb down the pillar while the other could dive from the height. 

There is a prevalent fishing community near this site. Hope this kids pick up fishing soon !  

The boy in the center was initially unhappy as I didn't throw coins for him to fetch. But later he posed for me to click! 

Why am I cornered?

The Desert

The Desert

The White Salt Desert -  Rann of Kutch

Here I am my friend

In this full moon night

Standing on the shimmering whiteness

That was once a sea.

No water, no oasis, no shelter, no movement

Is this how life was meant to be?

She deserted me.

My endless prayers all unanswered

And days passed in daze.

I waited for her to return

Not seconds, not minutes, not hours

 But more than a thousand four sixty days.

The sandstorm stops

But I continue to weep and mourn

Questioning Him

Is this the life for which I was born?

So in the search for my answers

Inattentive, I start to walk alone on this hard salt

Trying to figure out what was my fault.

Now with an ocean of tears drying out

My wide-open eyes gazed

The starry night merging with the unending horizon

Where Hydra, Virgo, Aries and Great Bear continued to play games

I now see the whole universe smilingly looking down on me

 ‘Stars can’t shine without darkness my friend’, they say

In the middle of this white loneliness, I find my answers, I find my way.