You are not God
But -
You can be an angel,
Of mercy and kindness,
Towards the deprived,
Said one-eyed grandpa,
A wounded war veteran,
To his crying grandson.
How?
Asked the orphan,
By being gentle with
God’s gentle creatures,
Roaming His diverse Kingdom,
Replied the dying man.
I will, said the child,
Stop hitting the squirrels,
And pigeons;
Do not stop there, my son,
Said the grandfather,
A brave soldier who fought
For honour and freedom.
Talk sweetly to the elderly,
The street urchins and others,
That need only a warm hug and a smile,
Spread cheer in lonely lives,
And, my dear son,
Wipe away the tears of a child,
Sitting alone,
On a wintry night,
Outside
The steps of a cathedral,
Synagogue,
Mosque,
Or, a temple,
Because God sees you
Through those brimming
Innocent eyes.
I will,
Said the sobbing child,
What else?
O, Dear,
Just remember,
Stop hating others,
Because hate destroys
Not them but
Ultimately you as well,
And, never ever,
Hurt others by cruel words,
More lethal than guns
And that was the last sermon
Given by the tough
Battle-hardened forgotten soldier
To a sensitive child, wide-eyed,
Sitting near the bed, a dark room,
In a gloomy run-down house,
That could not be maintained on
A little government pension. |
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Comments on this Poem
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Thanks a lot: Deeksha.
Sunil
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a very touching thougit sir
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Dear rdashby,
Thanks for reading so closely. Interpretations vary. This might be right also.
Thanks again.
Sunil
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>that was the last sermon
Given by the tough
Battle-hardened forgotten soldier
To a sensitive child,<
Very touching; but does it not imply:a (sensitised) battled-hardened veteran looking at himself as a child.
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Thanks a lot Tariq Bhai and Madhumita for your support.
Sunil
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Dear sir .
thanks for shareing .such type of poem should be in sylebus so next generation aware the values of our nation n culture.
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Beautiful poem...Blakean Innocence
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Thanks a lot Sony Dalia for your perceptive comments. We need to propagate humane values more vigorously now. Poetry and famous senior poets like Dalia and Rajender Krishen can do a lot in this direction.
---Sunil Sharma
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Yes, Prof Sunil ji.We need a sobering advice as conveyed in this poem for educating the educated uneducated, uncivil folks, who take delight in driving barbs through tender souls and enjoying the fun.Even a tiger won't hunt when not hungry.Some folks chase squirrels, rabbits till they drop dead due to exhaustion.Dire need to check streaks of cruelty,sir.Regards.
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