I do get the feeling that one day
We are going to fall in a black hole
And emerge in another universe.
Who is not sick of this planet?
Is there a flicker of hope
In a world where nuclear weapons
May burst anytime,
Where genetically engineered viruses
May devour us anytime
Making of our meek bodies
A feast for the vultures or worms
Or the prey of scorching flames
Reducing us to ashes cold and grey.
Why can’t our search for alien life
Beyond our solar system be intensified?
It could serve as a guiding beacon
To bring epiphanic revelations
Of how to find solutions to our problems
That are keeping us on our toes.
If only we stopped thinking in narrow spaces……..
If only we learned to laugh at ourselves…….
Our imperfections, our narrow-mindedness………
If only we were not conspiracy-minded………….
If only we were not jealous, envious, supersticious,
Speaking in frenetic bursts,
Doing harm to others all the time
And in a trepidation of anxiety
Killing our inner selves slowly but surely.
I travel back in time and meet
Galileo Galilei, the sixteenth century astronomer.
I tell him about our problems.
He listens to me attentively and finally
When I expect an answer from him,
He puts his forefinger on his lips
And looks at me in serenity sublime.
His eyes glow steadily like lilac flame
And he says with his looks……
‘Be patient, there is hope for the world.’
pramila khadun
A definitive existential cri de coeur.
In a poem of considerable merit, Pramila begins in despondency and resignation, but ferrets out possible/ plausible solutions on the way,and ends on a note of hope –and Galileo !
Thanks dear Vijay for understanding, feeling and appreciating this poem, so close to my heart.
The poem takes us through a dark night and ends with the first rays of sun on the horizon. Nice!