LIFE IN LIMBO

From his place –

He saw it all.

Tethered to a wheelchair,

Tied and secure,

He felt like a balloon

Buoyant in his very own

Flights of fancy.

.

Tired of inactivity,

His mind ticked away, and

As a daily chore,

Was diligent in futile investigation

Of life around him --

Unfolding itself in many hues,

Especially in Springtime.

Inert and immobile,

He longed for infinite freedom,

To savor and touch

The sumptuous splendors

Of Nature around him;

But with heroic stoicism

He feigned inertia.

The sudden buzz of the bee

Broke his dull reverie.

Creating invisible loops in the air,

With mirthless abandon,

Turning circle after circle,

In wild exploration

It made an abrupt and hasty exit.

Departing like a conqueror--

Leaving behind nothing

But the faint echo of a din

That’s deafening….

It made him gasp.

The thirst for lost youth

Ached inside him.

Moments later,

The flicker of a pair of gauzy,

Luminous, fragile wings

With colors woven into patterns

Through which the sun

Danced into the room --

Caught his eye.

There was no hum,

No quandary,

No tearing hurry

But a playful flurry,

In the guileless pursuit of pleasure.

Frail and fickle,

Capricious and curious,

The winged creature fluttered about,

Delirious and naïve,

Delighted -- just to be alive.

But in an instant

Those shimmering wings,

So crafted with love and care,

Fell to pieces --

Fractured by some spinning,

Voracious blades above.

The magnificent creature,

So gay and blithe,

Lay quivering and shuddering,

Like a human in seizure

Till it lay motionless --

Like a useless piece of disposable adornment.

He saw hope fading away,

Joy recoiling with pain and

Life ending unfulfilled --

Perhaps all in vain!

In a life that is ravenous --

Sparing none but the industrious,

Nobody weeps for the slothful, 

The ineffectual angels

That leave behind 

Not their footprints 

but just their souls.

With his heart's rapid beat

His eyes grew misty.

He inhaled the fragrant air --

And destiny to a life in limbo.

Even though in Springtime.

****************

DDR,

CALCUTTA, MARCH 11, 2014