Jan 8, 2013

Feathered friends

Art by Ashok

There were once I remember
Noisy morning pleasures;
Cute little browny sparrows
Life’s sweet, simple refreshers.

Chirping by my window
They woke me every morn;
Pecking on the glass pane
When my day was born

The birdbath in my court
Where they used to throng
Their favorite social spot
To preen and tweet their song

The city is now grown-
Concrete, Traffic and smoke.
Where trees swayed and bloomed-
Cars and crowds choke

The court is now deserted
My feathered friends are gone;
The Birdbath breeds mosquitoes;
In silence breaks the dawn

I stare at my glass window;
Through soot I see the future;
Looting, losing as we speak
The simple pleasures of nature

Today my daughter asked me 
 “What are sparrows dad?”
“Sweet little chirpers”, I told her
“Feathered friends I once had”. 



22 comments:

  1. Very sweet poem ashok! Nostalgic

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  2. Sigh...Very well written words, Ashok! We used to have sparrows in our attic in a carton box. Because they were flying here and there, we used to switch off the fan often and before leaving for office, I used to leave some rice on my table without fail for them to eat. Those days are gone.

    Remember my post about red vented bul buls? They had hatched thrice in our garden. Yesterday, I saw only one bird chirping after a long time. Don't know what happened to her friend. Had a heavy heart for a long time.

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  3. This is sweet and sad. Nice art and writing as usual Ashok.

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  4. It is a pity how the young ones do not seem to have any connect with nature - I see the kids in my building trying to play with the cat on the road and it always brings a smile on my face...I hate the complex-system of residence that exists in Bombay where life is just compartmentalized and in the presence of modern amenities, the rustic charm of nature is lost...You hardly see any sparrows around...I love coming to Kolkata for a few days and re-visiting some of my childhood memories..The City of Joy is a good mix of nature and culture in my opinion :)

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  5. Nice poem and art Ashok!

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  6. Memories! They only exist in memories now.

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  7. instead of sparrows we have pigeons and crows in bif nos.

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  8. The disappearance of sparrows from our daily life is indeed sad & tragic - the heavy price we pay for so called development !

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  9. Very nice poem and very beautiful painting !!!

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  10. You really told a sad story here. So much of nature is being pushed aside for progress. Love the poem and the painting.

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  11. I am very lucky because despite the progress here in northern Italy there are still these cute feathered friends! Sparrows are everywhere and, in spring, the swallows come back!
    Wonderful art&poetry!

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  12. saar eppadi eppadi saar ippadi kalakaringo..super yar

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  13. A beautiful poem, Ashok!!! and I LOVE this painting of this feathered friend!!!

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  14. Nostalgic and Sweet...

    There are so many things our children are not aware of. We looted many of the pleasures we experienced and is leaving a not so good world for our children....sad right?

    I love that picture...It looks lovely like the words...

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  15. Anonymous10:59 PM

    So very sad about the disappearance of the birds.. Beautiful shot and words.

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  16. Love those sparrows and the one you have painted. Lovely poem. Miss those pretty lil guys.

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  17. As usual, Ashok - beautifully intertwined words and lovely painting.

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  18. Hi Ashok:) I almost forgot to breath while reading the poem. It made me a bit emotional. But sadly this is how it is. I love your painting. Be careful with it!

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  19. Thanks everyone for your heartfelt comments...

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  20. Poem and art. competing in true sense.. whom do I vote? Love both equally!

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