Hunger Games

Fortunate are those mothers

Who hand feed their toddlers

And are hand-fed by them when they get old.

How unfortunate I am

Me and my child suffered hunger pangs

Fought voraciously with destiny

Build hope in each others eyes

Dreamt better days

Reposed faith in God

And here he is lying in front of me

Baked skeleton, burnt skin, sunken eyes, malnourished

He is dead and I am alive.

 

Remaining empty stomach for days

When we were provided the food

I had forcefully fed him portions of mine

But little one had small stomach

He couldn’t consume more

He paid the price

He is dead & I am alive.

 

We both were born poor

Cursed

May be by God

For whatever reasons better known to it

We accepted the life

Smiled

Looked for ways to survive, yet

He is dead & I am alive.

 

Worse is I can’t even wail, weep or cry

Remain gloomy or mourn

This isn’t an odd event around.

Feelings are lost

Tears have dried

Emotions have turned inferior

Human life takes a birth here

As if to die

My son

He is dead & I am alive.

 

I have heard in stories

Ages back we were animals.

I still see animal within me, suppressed,

Eager to roar

It’s the conscience that keeps it calm

But I am yet to understand

What has changed?

Isn’t for us too ‘survival of fittest’.

What an irony, fit was my son

He is dead and I am alive.

 

His father

How hard he tried

He couldn’t feed us

Evenings he would hang his head in shame

One fine day he ran away

Fearing our death in front of his eyes

Little one was still in womb

I suggested gulping in herbs

People said I will face God’s wrath.

God couldn’t act worst

Now that my child is no more around

Who’s the criminal & who committed the crime?

My innocent little one

He is dead and I am alive.

 

I have heard from travellers

In far off land

There’s enough food that much goes in drain

I wish someday that drain

Flows through my village

Polluted, spoiled, wasteful doesn’t matter.

It will lease in life

Elixir

Make us human

Add in sympathy, empathy and compassion

Today there is no one to soothe

Even though my child hopped around all

He is dead and I am alive.

 

All I pray at this point of time

No more children die

Anywhere around

Children make Gods as they grow

So easily Gods die in front of our eyes

Don’t know how and in what ways

You can stop this undocumented crime

Let not the children die

Let not the blessed one’s die

Let not a mother ever sing for her infant child

He is dead and I am alive.

– Kumar Gautam