By: Dr. Archan Mehta

 

Every Now and Then 

 

 

Every now and then,

When I go out into our world,

I feel the need

To escape from our world.

After all,

Our world is

Full of unpleasant strangers

And unintended consequences:

For example,

I may want to play

With moonbeams from outer space

Like Lord Shri Krishna plays

With his flute to charm

Fair damsels, fondly called gopis,

But I am thwarted by

The bank official’s voice,

Like the loud and offensive

Bark of a dog with rabies,

Advising me to hurry up,

Exchange notes and transactions,

Because other people are

Standing in line, waiting

And I have been spotted

Daydreaming, once again.

Every now and then,

I feel the need to avoid

Perfect strangers,

Who approach me, suddenly,

And without an appointment,

Requesting personal favors

And professional recommendations,

And claim to be my long, lost

Relatives or worse; nameless

And faceless people,

Who are numbers on

A roll call,

Strange and odd people,

Because memory fails

Me and I can’t place them,

And I would rather

Keep to myself anyway.

Every now and then,

I feel the need to 

Walk in the park alone,

To smell the sweet

Scents of flowers alone,

To treat myself to a

Course meal in a fancy

And posh restaurant alone,

To mull over my thoughts alone,

Without people judging me.

Every now and then,

I feel the need to

Walk away from distractions:

Passing vehicular traffic,

Toxic gas,

The political mafia,

The academic mafia,

The religious mafia,

Battles over turf and territory,

Difficult people with hidden

Agendas and ulterior motives

Who try to exploit your goodness,

And take you for a ride

And back-stab you when

You are not looking,

The repulsive smells

Of hospitals, sanitized

With acids and agents,

And littered with 

Recovering, dying, or dead patients,

The stench of Indian rest-rooms,

Insecure and malevolent bosses

Who think they are always right

And impose their agendas on you

And leave you out in the cold,

And annoying and irritating

Co-workers who blame

You for their own mistakes.

Every now and then,

I feel the need to

Say no to party invitations,

Assemblies like conferences,

Seminars, workshops, and convocations,

Soul-crushing bureaucratic,

Procedural work,

And administrative duties

With no end in sight.

Every now and then,

I feel the need to

Leave my parents,

who are senior citizens

and dear to me,

and take a vacation,

if only for a few days,

and escape to a sandy

beach in South Goa, India,

where I can see the 

oceanic waves merging

with the land at sunrise,

and where I can slowly

sip a large mug of local beer,

with several ice cubes for company,

and stroll in the wilderness with

other vegetable and animal life.

Every now and then,

I feel the need to leave

Mechanical devices and gadgets,

And tune into the music of nature:

The chirping of the birds,

The way the blue sky

Changes suddenly to

A yellow sun at sunrise

And an orange colored

Picture perfect hue during sunset.

Every now and then,

I feel the need to

Leave mortality behind

And pretend I am one

With our universe,

An everlasting joy

Which never leaves

You like a shadow

Shaped like a stalker.

Every now and then,

I dream about making

Our world a better place,

So our children and grandchildren,

Who will follow us and 

Inherit our planet Earth,

Will not have to face,

The threat of environmental

Destruction and nuclear holocaust

Like the sword of Damocles

Hanging over their pure, innocent heads.

 

 

Dr. Archan Mehta

Dr. Mehta’s works have appeared in numerous publications:

 

 

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