Saturday, March 27, 2010

Aching espirit

most of us know what homesickness is
we have a word for it in English
but do we have a word for that feeling....
the feeling where the spirit craves to explore the unknown
to set off on a journey, meet new folks, hear another tongue
the feeling of disorientation, when you return from a long journey,
the unsatiated spirit yearns for more.....
whats that word?? the closest dictionary word is 'wanderlust'..
the word derived from the Anglo- Saxon roots
but the word they did'nt borrow from the Germans
the word that carries the true essence of the feeling,
an aching espirit and itching feet... is 'fernweh'

Friday, March 12, 2010

The Bombay Comedy

As I cross the length and breadth of the city of Mumbai,
I am starkly reminded of Dante's Divine Comedy
I feel at once in hell, purgatory and heaven
hell seems to have broken loose as I see
mangroves laced with polythenes, standing amidst the toxic waters of murdered rivers
the stench of urinated n paan stained walls
the slimy mucous drops on railway platforms
gives the feeling ur not living in a city but a mucous membrane
we have seemed to have entered purgatory - the road between heaven and hell-
with the local municipal corp taking many corrective steps
encouraging arty youngsters to come out with paint brushes to paint the city walls
projects such as the metro , the cleaning of the Mithi river
clearing the railway quarters for more fruitful development
the sea link project on in top gear
the flamingoes still flock the Sewri wetlands
the leopards still trapse the encroached natural park
the skeletal Bombay mills still stand tall,
craving for attention
the lost caves of Kanheri and Mahakali battling for survival
im not sure if 'Mumbai''s destiny is to be another shanghai
but with the culture and flora and fauna much more diverse
we deserve nothing less than 'Paradise'