As I touch the shy bashful plant,
triggering an impulse inside
it folds and closes its leaves
expelling water instantly,
like a young girl
on being tickled unawares.
At the face of a simple breeze
it droops and collapses promptly
veils its succulent leaves, girl-like,
when wind lifts her dupatta playfully
Sighting the grasshoppers landing on it,
it becomes so sensitive, so dramatic,
as if struck by an electric shock
or when chastity is in peril.
Once for hours I sat watching it
my playmate in lonesome days
engages me even in this cityscape
without a moment of dullness.
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