4

i know this old woman
who
talks loudly about
the benefits of yoga
and
her hatred for class four

and that lady
who
can talk endlessly about
the enchantress of florence
and
quotes milton a little too effortlessly

and a daughter
who
spent endless years worrying about
the legacy of her father
and
if she could immortalise it somehow

and the mother
who
is always complaining about
her elder son who is no good
and
how he will leave her one day

*

but when im lucky i meet this girl
who
talks about
life with a giggle in her smile
and
why she prefers beedis to cigarettes
---

Happy Birthday, Mom.

I may be far away, but I've got a glass of champagne in my hand and a smile on my face.