ETERNITY

by Bhargab Chatterjee

eternity
a damp dark corridor
leads
to the source of my name
the way my mother used to utter
or in my friend's version
art for humanity's sake  
wretched
as cricket culture in india
yet there is bonhomie
impervious to economic limitations
though shanties are better
than age old edifices
they don't say
anything about history  
only paste colours
on the canvas of time

two children are playing
tic tac toe
on a dirty road
beside a public toilet