All of five… September 8, 2010
Posted by poetrybygitanjali in English.Tags: chips, five, hide and seek, mango, mulberyy, musical chairs, paper plates, patry, rasna, samosas, summer, tree
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He asked “How old are you?”
She stood on the ledge like a victorious king in his balcony
and said “I’m five”
“All of it.
Not a day older.
Not a day younger.
So that makes it my birthday today.
We’ll wear party hats with elastic
that will pinch our skin.
Drink rasna and play
Musical chairs.
Eat out of paper plates
that can neither hold the samosa
Nor the chips.
We’ll play Hide – and -seek
and make believe.
‘Cause we…
No, I still believe in princes and princesses
and unicorns.
And adventure, courage, bravery and rescue.
I’m five, all of it.
Not a day older.
Not a day younger.
I still believe that summer lasts for
five hundred days.
And that the mango tree on which we play
our summer games
will never be cut down.
And the mulberry tree will always provide our
evening snack in the garden.
Or that the terrace and passage way on which I
hop and skip will be never be demolished.
And that photograph of the five of us,
On the sofa,
will always bring us smiles.
I’m five, all of it
and I still believe. “
Gitanjali 