Children of our nation,
Babies, born under the burning sun
On Indian soil.
And they grow, only naturally
Pot-bellied and nearly limp,
Eyes dull, weak and tear-lit,
Festering wounds on their arms and legs
Infested with sickness and disease.
Little bodies, enlarged heads
Undernourished and dying
Like mounds of dirt on the footpaths;
Infants, children, mothers
Breeding in filth.
Poverty-stricken streets
Where beggar children, like flies
Hover around eating houses,
Breathing in the stale air
Of yesterdays cooking smell.
Hungry stomachs, big hearts
They beg the feed of dustbins,
Letting not one scrap to waste.
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7 comments:
great writing, sad,but real, hard to bear for both the sufferers and those that are not..
nice...but does this refer to all the 'children of our nation'?
thanks for your wishes...did you read the article I sent you?
and it is so fucking wrong. so very, very wrong. and we have churches with untold wealth that cling onto their riches when with all that money they could cure the third world debt.
what kind of faith is that?
there are times when i feel proud of my generation what with George Harrison's and Ravi Shankars 1970's concerts for Bangla Desh and the magnificent Band Aid/Live Aid butwe shouldn't need charity when all we/they want is dignity. there are times when i feel so desperately ashamed to be white and living in comparative wealth when my fellow man is suffering.
it is so fucking wrong and your excellent poem made me cry and i am too fucking old and too fucking street tough to admit to that but keep the faith. you and your generation must make those changes.
x
Misreflection-> Thank you for your comment
Shubhodeep-> I sometimes believe that it is the street children who are the heart and soul of India. It is in their eyes that we see the real world. I watched the movie Mother Teresa yesterday and it touched me when she said "God loves you most, in your suffering".
But can we accept God's plan for us? How can we justify the inequality, the economic disparity and the injustice of it all!
CJ-> Yes, it is frustrating to see such injustice. And it tears one apart to see children brought into the world just to beg on the streets and live this misery from a very tender age.
"God loves you most, in your suffering".
But can we accept God's plan for us? How can we justify the inequality, the economic disparity and the injustice of it all!
Well said ...
guys, i am sorry if i am treading on anyones toes but we cannot blame 'god' for the hideous poverty of india nor of any of the third world poverty.
i don't believe in constructed deities but even if i did i cannot bring myself to think that a benign god would allow such pain to afflict so many when it is avarice and contempt that leave one half of the world starving whilst the other half lives in luxury and it should not be tolerated.
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