SUPPLY CHAIN > POETRY
Whether mizzle or heat;
or skyful of glisters;
he e’er has unshoed feet;
is ever in blisters;
and whether ‘tis cold;
whether young or old;
whate’er the weather falls;
he Rickshaw hauls and hauls!
Anear the footpath-folk,
in his party of three,
he would smilingly smoke-
the Tendu-leaved Beedi;
and rest his hands and feet,
upon the teastand’s seat;
then come commuters’ calls;
again he Rickshaw hauls!
A tatty undervest;
the cheekbones expended;
and sharp skeletal chest;
all show: he’s underfed;
but his calves, his loins and bones,
are hard as Diamond stones;
his lank limbs, you see,
stronger than you or me.
In chill, no woollen pall;
no ease from Summer’s Loo;
no tough tect ‘gainst rainfall;
then marauds him some ague.
Not always by him keep-
good aliment and sleep—
cannot affordably
nourish his family.
He wakes with crack of dawn;
bathes in a bourne as ice;
each day, same rags, puts on;
eats Chapati or rice.
He treadles everywhere-
to each gennel and chare;
and when belimps noonday,
he rests atop a footway.
He services for us;
yet some men with disdain,
for few coins they make a ruckus;
and abased he does remain.
But in his heart’s a gold
if seen through, ’twill unfold;
which gives the same aglint rays,
like your own joyant days!
Shamik Banerjee is a poet and poetry reviewer from the North-Eastern belt of India. He loves taking long strolls and spending time with his family. His deep affection for Solitude and Poetry provides him happiness.