Running carefree with naked feet,
Reaching for mangoes up in the trees,
Endless summer days of fun,
Spent in the lap of the sun.
Hours spent in glee with friends both imaginary and real,
Board games, hopscotch, badminton and dolls,
Trips to the beach on moonlit nights,
And ice cream treats to beat the heat.
Walks in the evening with pleasant friends,
Vacation at grandma’s comes to an end,
Back to school and back to the grind,
Churning homework day and night.
Weekends come and weekends go,
But the churning never ceases,
Cooped up indoors under a light,
Write, write, write, write!
Then come the tests that are pointless,
And activities that are no fun,
Slowly they suck out the vital force,
Falling ill is no excuse, the homework must be done still.
Summers pass by without a trace,
Holiday homework takes its place,
Nowhere to go and nothing to do,
But homework through and through.
Chugging along school and college,
Silencing the child inside,
Work, responsibility, commute, stress,
Replace school work and projects.
Working hard, working long,
Surely has taken its toll,
Popping pills and skimping on sleep,
Need to make sure you never skip a beat.
Bigger, bigger, better, better,
That’s the mantra of a go-getter,
Going where and getting what?
We all end up in a six-foot plot.
Damayanti Chandrasekhar loves yoga, baking and the Tao. She has a Masters degree in journalism and her other interests include reading, travelling and playing agony aunt via her blog www.punctuatelife.co