-by Brian Mendonca
Barefoot child, where do you go?
You stand on the kerb and watch the buses roar past,
Or play on the the pavement with your sister and brother.
Tanned in the sun, your half-pants slouch around your knees.
You are baby-sitter, brother, beggar -- all in one.
Your grimy hands hold no toys
As you make a subway arch your amusement park.
Your skipping in the sun makes people in cars smile
But they don't know, the concrete's too hot.
From red to green, they all move on
But when I return you are gone.
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Published in Skyline Coursebook 4 by Sheba Victor. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2006; pix source Hindu.com
Barefoot child, where do you go?
You stand on the kerb and watch the buses roar past,
Or play on the the pavement with your sister and brother.
Tanned in the sun, your half-pants slouch around your knees.
You are baby-sitter, brother, beggar -- all in one.
Your grimy hands hold no toys
As you make a subway arch your amusement park.
Your skipping in the sun makes people in cars smile
But they don't know, the concrete's too hot.
From red to green, they all move on
But when I return you are gone.
------------------------------------------------------
Published in Skyline Coursebook 4 by Sheba Victor. New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2006; pix source Hindu.com
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