My pancakes look like scrambled eggs

And taste like butter jelly

In  the mirror, I look no better

My face a hamburger and hair like vermicelli.

Mama always said there would be days

When things don’t go your usual way

No panic, no fret, no tears would wash away

The mess you made in the kitchen today.

I try hard to hear mama’s voice

But it sounds like some other- worldly noise

from far away when I was five and things were right

When eggs were eggs in plain sight.

I am not five, not any more

Mama’s kitchen is a distant shore

Hunger pangs tear at the core

The day and I, both a messy eyesore.

I shed a few tears sitting alone

Drown the mascara as I sit and moan

But the smell of eggs has not yet gone

I get up to scrub the mess I have strewn.

And then I remember what Mama said

Take a deep breath..yes, you should

and forget the pancakes on a bad day

Today, a regular bowl of cereal is just as good.

Roopal Kewalya is a film graduate from NID, Ahmedabad and   has been an active independent writer for television, short films and even song lyrics for various organizations. She has also had short stints as a stage actor, a radio jockey for FMII and loves to dabble in all things creative.