Standing frozen in a dark pond of shit
Filling my neck with stink and puke
I looked around to see many others breathing
With their heads above the dark liquid shit
Souls filled with fear to look around or down.
Then I saw a reflection of light twinkling
Penetrating the shadows of the leaves
Of a mango tree of hope near the pond
I moved up to walk towards that light
To hear some others shouting behind me
`Don’t move, you are increasing the stink!’
(Based on an old story I heard during a meeting in Chennai a few decades back.)
K.P. Sasi is a film maker, cartoonist and writer
