By RK Lakhi Kant<\/p>\n
On the fringes of the forest
\nThe city begins from here
\nVehicles one after the other
\nBeep, bop, and whir at the red light
\nA new township coming up
\nAware suddenly of the cuckoo singing
\nWhile walking towards the red light
\nA powerful sound, a pitch higher
\nThan the humdrum of the city
\nNatural sounds like the cooing
\nAre superior to the mechanical
\nSounds which are the epitome of matter
\nAll noises converge on the cuckoo\u2019s song
\nThe song says, \u201cfeel free\u201d, and it is the
\nBird\u2019s song on my way out which dilutes
\nAll other sounds produced by the city
\nLike a forest watch who protects the green land
\nThe bird keeps the city\/forest buffer intact
\nAnd provides calm to the mind
\nBut somewhere down the line the song
\nDisappears among the city sounds<\/p>\n
Cuckoo 2nd meeting<\/p>\n
My way takes me back again to the red light
\nOn another day
\nThis time I find out that the
\nCuckoo seems to be impatient, in a hurry
\nUnlike the last time when it was soft and composed
\nIn its calling
\nSo useless are our endeavors
\nWhen the cuckoo starts calling
\nSo cheap all this materialism is
\nOne small clean sound penetrates
\nAnd dissolves in a moment
\nAll the cluttering city sounds
\nA thanksgiving we owe
\nTo the cuckoo for showing we
\nCannot be manipulated all the time
\nBy the sounds that drive the city<\/p>\n
Cuckoo 3rd meeting<\/p>\n
Getting further away from the cuckoo\u2019s song
\nCarrying the cuckoo in my mind
\nI head back toward the place I stay
\nThinking and becoming more and more
\nEngrossed in nature\u2019s revelation of its superiority
\nO! So pleasant this land is
\nBut why is it trying to become a
\nGraveyard of spirituality
\nThe song exceeds matter and provides a way out into
\nAesthetics, spirituality
\nEnsures something which is positive
\nAnd negates the negativity of life in the city
\nO cuckoo! Unburden my mind from
\nThe depths of materialism
\nI announce my dependence on nature\u2019s kingdom<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n\n