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September 30, 2024

A Quiet Diwali

By Ketaki Datta

A Quiet Diwali

Cops came blaring a microphone,
"No crackers, no noisy fireworks please,"
Little Pumpu went in dumps,
Went to the balcony to mull over
these terms!
His mind went roving around
The dear aunts and grandpas
Whom he lost to the ruthless
Clutch of Covid-19, oh alas!
The cops added, "We should
Keep the air clean,
We should make the surroundings
Cleaner than it had been!"
Pumpu looked around
And found the air clean already,
So no need to garb it with smog
By bursting crackers, leaving it untidy!
Pumpu came into the room
Sadder and wiser,
He sidled up to dad to say,
"I want 'diya', not a cracker!"

Dad tried to read the lines
On his little son's face,
He spoke so wise,
What was really the case?
Pumpu stood straight to say,
"I want all of us to pray
To keep everyone hale and hearty,
Happy and sprightly!
If our air gets polluted,
We will suffer instead!"
The happy parents exchange a glance,
Being happy to see their son, in a trance.






Glossary

Diya: Earthen Lamp



Article © Ketaki Datta. All rights reserved.
Published on 2021-11-01
Image(s) are public domain.
1 Reader Comments
Frankie Laufer
11/02/2021
12:38:23 PM
Very nice, it felt warm and humid just like India.
And you captured the child’s spirit and the parents caring????????????????
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