Mist Curtains
Photo: Karan Madhok
Mists congregate again, shroud the town, envelope
A cloak unfathomable, lets walk about and through
Stillness white maintained, grey skies above
Breezes all set aside, thunder assumes silence
Crows finding homes, others have disappeared already
Streets lined with strays, coiled and composed stare
Humans sketch petty textures, everyday details in life
Leaves on trees smile, as if prayers answered in skies...
Life halts, looking up into the grey
Recedes in unison, as if preparing floor
Where countless ballerinas would dance
Once the Queen has declared, open this day.
Withdrawn bustle, nature has its own way
Markets surge, though on a different scale
Humans seeded in comfort of their jackets
Murmur about, isolated in looming stillness
Hotels and Lodges decorated, broadcast reports
Holiday packages far and wide, sold and sold more
Trolleys carrying mountains of countryside firewood
Highest in demand, as the day further tranquil ages…
Voices circle the air, ever so freezing
“10 grands? If she falls by evening!”
Next moves, contemplated in anticipation
“Make sure we have enough candles.”
“Get vegetables and milk when you come home.”
Guys milking softy dispensers after a long dry spell
For macho tourists would savour softy shortly.
Needless to say, we are always preparing
New Year’s eve or Christmas day
Up in the hills, holidays often relate
Our everyday share of lonesome stares…
The town has become very cold now indeed
Fresh fires on side walls and lots of tea
Peanuts and sweet corns in brevity
And the apt gloves, I check to see…
Will she descend from those woolly clouds?
Lying on softest beds, getting seduced
The ground still, not cold enough for her
Or just angry, so many trees we fell…
A glint of certain mockery on the horizon
Division in brilliant shades, almost perfume
She wouldn’t come down upon us today
Dry, as they say, cold not enough for her…
Money is mostly lost, hotels and betters
Yet hopeful tourists these streets parade,
Whiskey and Rum pours down lips intact
Another day spent, our darling snow awaited.
But I do remember, when she graced
Trees, grounds, and roofs alike
Dad would be at the general store
And mum tending to everything else
Skies were grey and mists all fair
Deep silence over our town
We played cricket
And a cheer somewhere would surge
Others cheer everywhere else
Snow did come down that day
Oh! So gently
Small flakes to apple size
For two whole days…
Mist curtains were opened
Perhaps the Queen was now ready
Her beauty, in supreme whiteness
Water nervous system froze
Nothing flowed out the taps
Cars stayed where they were
Nothing moved, time stood still
All of us witnessed that spectacle
All of us rejoiced the Queen
All of us made snowmen and women
Ah! It did snow that day…
***
Sarvesh Wahie is an artist and (re)searcher from Mussoorie. His book of poems Black Verses was independently published in 2019. You can find him on Instagram: @_immanence_ or on his website Varying Shades.
