Third World Thoughts Of A Poor Man

From the day I landed here in the States, I have been noticing one thing. It is the amount of food wasted. Each time we had dinners and parties, there used to be lot of food, but most of it was wasted. Suddenly a thought came to my mind. If this could be used to feed at least one hungry person (not in the US, because there is no hunger here) somewhere in Africa or Asia? Each piece of bread wasted is the single piece of bread that any hungry and famished person has to be fed upon. It is that precious piece snatched away from his 'poverty filled plate.' If these hotels and restaurants could design a way to prevent these 'unethical' wastage and supply to the consumers only what could be consumed by them?

Do you see this plate full of tasty food? But sad to say that much of this was wasted.

I don't know whether my thoughts are right or wrong. But I know that much of this was wasted. I also know that many around the world suffer from lack of food. The question is whether they have any right to this food. The question is whether I or anybody else has any kind of responsibility to feed them. Or all these may be some third world thoughts of a poor Indian...

MATRIARCH AND THE FAMILY TREE

Matriarch, the keeper of the family tree..
She mothered it,
roots reaching down to the fathoms of ancestry,
yet, fruits were written under ‘his’ name.


She wrote our book of life,
never to be mentioned in it.
sold to the man for a pittance,
overpowered by his might,
sweat and sighs behind the doors,
destined to be at his feet.
lost her identity to give them one.

Light of the house, fire in the hearth,
always burning, never burnt out.
When our plates were full, yours was empty.
When our hearts were empty, yours was full-

that’s you Matriarch.


Each time when you taught us the ‘sign of the cross’,
you were bearing the pangs of the cross.
Did you ever have a resurrection?
Faith lived, faith taught.
Values lived, values taught.
Each time your voice was suppressed by the domineering power of the man
you let your deeds speak.
The power of silence...
Meaning of words unspoken- You were words unspoken, but
never acts undone
presence when you are hidden…,


A furious lioness, you ward off the predators.

Hampered by your seasons,
protected us from our seasons.
When drought came- they came often and on –
opened the heart, and there flowed the eternal spring.
Oh! Matriarch, you are the most liberated soul that I have seen
We call you Mother,
sister, daughter, and wife…
woman….
Face may change, womb is the same.


The Ardha-Nari-Iswara, mover of creation,
the furrows on your face tell of the toils of creation and sustenance,
but, never that of the destroyer,

Do you want to see her?
Look at the light that shines over us
To touch her….?
Climb down the rock that holds us high
To Feel her?
Dig the hearth of our homes, in the burning charcoal.
You will see a piece of charcoal when all others are burnt out..
still burning..
that’s her…
To experience her?
Follow the stream that waters the family tree


If you ever have a chance,
take that journey to her.
It will be the sweetest and most fulfilling pilgrimage




*Ardha Nari Iswara-The Indian concept that God is half male and half female.

Ardha=half,Nari= Woman, Iswara=God


(This poem is the reflection of women in the Indian society. They are the prime movers of our culture and family life; they suffer a lot; yet they hold everything together; they are the keepers of our family tree, but their names are written down in the book of our family life..)

The Twin Towers...

Dumb and mute...

with no smile of pleasure,

nor the cry of pain,

no action to react,

standing perennially...

never to sit

only the face of man,

have you?

a heart...?

a smile...?

to cheer...?

Generations call you gateway to the city,

welcoming all..

into the heart of the city,

Welcome...?

welcome without a smile..?

Generations call you pathway from the city,

saying goodbye to all,

Goodbye...?

Goodbye without a tint of sorrow...?

I call you a dumb, mute statue..

Suddenly,

a murmur,

a chiding whisper into my closed ears...

'I am mute and dumb, no, blind too..

or else how could I stand here,

watching the city day and night,

cries of the penniless, shivering in the cold,

'colored' shades of segregation ringing in my ears,

putrefied fat of the rich and glorified,

poisoning the Cuyahoga,

blackening smoke of dignified pretense-

clouding the tallest mansions,

painful cries of unborns,

shattering the conjugal nights,

divorced parentage,

tearing the filial love apart-

three days a week to the womb that mothered him,

three days a week to the man that fathered him,

with a day redundant.. the seventh day..

drugs and crimes, lazy orgies..

Lady of the city, trampled down,

object of pleasure, means to the 'market'

I see the good and bad,floating over Cuyahoga..

the good washed away, the bad sedimenting by the side..

fertile soil, greens appear,

bucks and bucks, grow up there, fruits of that sedimented soil,

All I see ..day and night..

But with a heart of stone,

mute and dumb,

blind to the suffering,

I survive years to come..

But I am better than you ,

man of flesh and blood,

pounding heart that thrives on emotions

yet, dumb and mute,

as rock by the wayside.'

Oh! the mute witness to the city,

my heartfelt salute....

(As I was standing on the bridge over the Cuyahoga river, near the twin towers at the gateway to the city, on the 23rd of feb. 2008, I called the towers 'mute and blind'. And this was the reply I got)

WINTER THOUGHTS...

Oh! the chilly broodings of my heart,

feelings of detachment..

running through my veins like the invading numbness,

so cold..

Four walls protect me;

walls of my room,

warmth of my fire place,

walls of my own feelings;

I like the walls to have no doors,

no windows to the world,

lock them tight,

keep them shut,

shut my heart too.

Yet,

little bits of green,

trying not to be outpowered by the clutches of chillness,

waiting for a melt down..

The sun to rise over me,

the warmth of feelings to come back to me,

to open my doors,

unlock the windows,

and to see them as myown,

feel them as I feel..

Winter is a thought,

thought is my 'heart',

through the heart to me,

to the winter of my being...

Something To Share....

A visit to FAITH ISLAMIC ACADEMY SCHOOL-AKRON-ON FEB.07.2008 A school run by the Islamic community offers a lot to learn, particularly with regard to the medium of teaching and the curriculum followed. They have two sets of curricula- one the American one and the other, so to say, a type of Islamic one, going simultaneously. Basic tenets of faith and religion are assimilated by the students, who range from all parts of the Islamic World. Though they had children from other religion as well till last year, there are none from other religions this year. The stress on Islamic faith in instruction may be the reason, so I feel.The innate urge of the immigrants to keep their religious faith and language was evident there.

………………the dream………? Is there any regulation imposed and exercised on these exclusive religious schools? I want to know. Will this in future change the so called ‘secular’ image of the American Republic? This is something for me to wait and see.
VISIT TO STOW-MONROE FALLS CITY SCHOOL-Feb.07.2008
This is the inscription on the door to the library room at the Stow-Monroe Falls City School. The vision and far-sighted aspiration of the forefathers are well evident here. If all the schools in America have this same perspective and aspire diligently to adhere to it and work earnestly to achieve it, then, I have no doubt, the prosperity and well being of America today will be the foundation for further advancement. Each moment of my tour of the school premises and the facilities provided there had the single aim, i.e. to see what are thethe infrastructure provided to make this vision a concrete reality.

This motif on the wall in front of the school restaurant (run by the catering specialization students shows the flowering of an angel…oh! My God..this is the efflorescence of the innate abilities of the students of Stow-Monroe Falls made possible here. So sublime a vision, it is
One of the things that attracted me most was the student run restaurant. This gives them not only the opportunity to learn what they like most but also learn the same from the real life situations. Here they can assess their skills and aptitudes against real life situations. It is not the mere simulation of the reality, but reality in its completeness has found its way into this school.

Wow! Will you believe this…This is not the full fledged kitchen at some luxury hotel..but this is the well equipped kitchen in the student run restaurant in the Stow-Monroe School. How can this students fail in their marathon race to sustain themselves economically..They have a trade now, a trade that appeals directly to the stomach..and mind you..stomach rules us all..So they have the hold on our stomach..and through the stomach on our purses

Education is a collective process and we learn through the social give and take of it.Moving hand in hand with out the racial, religious,economic and social walls hindering clear thought and vision makes education the most potent resource to face life with confidence. This is the message I got from visiting this school.I too joined hands with them in this process.
The School choir sang for us the song ‘some day..some day…’ It was so nice listening to their ardent singing.. Opportunities for the all round development provided to the students at each step was self evident here. Though not in singing, but in spirit, I too joined them.
The interest of the community in the education of their young ones was self evident in the presence of the School Board members there. They monitor the progress of the school and in that process, the advancement of their children at each step. The social aspect of the learning process and the constant vigilance that society needs to impose on the education process are well established here. It is for the sole reason that today’s students form tomorrow’s citizens.
I found the students so out-reaching and open. Something genuine expression of the American culture that I have experienced from the very moment I have landed here, I was so happy at their free and loving attitude. I pray let this openness and goodness not be lost in the process of growth.Let this goodness be the characteristic strength and power of the American society.
CHINESE NEW YEAR CELEBRATIONS
The dawn of the Chinese Year of the Rat was celebrated in the Presbyterian church near by. It was fantastic to see the young girls dancing with colorful shades of decorated fans in their hands.
This is me enjoying the Chinese food. But poor me… do not tell anybody.. It was all lost feelings after the party. I will tell the reason.. We had to stand in a long queue to have the food..So I pretended to be civilized and good mannered and waited everybody else to have food. But in reality it was my laziness to stand and wait long for the whole time that made me to sit and go to get the food at the end. Oh! Pity me.. as I reached the food, it was over and I got some left over of chicken wings and pieces of apples.. I took it and made a general comment for every one to hear that eating was not the whole reason for my going there. So great of me.. all must have thought.. but only I knew the total disappointment brewing up inside me as I watched my friends enjoying plate full of tasty Chinese dishes….Man can be so hypocritical like me…ha..ha..ha.

As I See America...

The America of my dreams...the America of my readings...the America that media has given me...the America that films have portrayed to me....I have come with many expectations to fit into my actual experiences of America during my five months stay here...Will this be an inevitable shock to see my dreams and expectations shattered to pieces by the utter reality of actual experiences? Will this be a immensely enriching feelings which will come back to me in future when I am away from this land in my reminiscences?...I embark upon this journey to discover America...not like the Great Columbus did in the past...but a personal journey..to discover what America has for me to take back home....come and join me in my sojourn...here in this Great Land...