Innocent Question

by Ravinder Malhotra

This is a tale of a little boy

That stood outside a store

Barefoot on a freezing day

Peering through the door

A kindly lady stopped to ask

What he longed to buy?
'To my God, I’m praying for shoes’

Was the lad's reply.

Taking his tiny hand in hers
She stepped inside the store

‘Socks and shoes for him’ she said

Pointing to the boy before

Seating then the boy she knelt

And cleaned in quiet retreat

Drying them with a towel placed

The shoes on the boy’s feet

She bought another pairs of socks

Her purse would then allow

Patting fondly the boy she said

'You’ll be comfortable now.'

But as she turned to leave the store

The boy’s face came to life

In tears he caught her hand and asked

'Are you God's wife?'

04-Mar-2011

More By : Ravinder Malhotra

Views: 1522 Comments: 7

Comments on this Poem

Thank you all for your words of appreciation. It is heartening to see the no. of hits on the poem; I interpret it as a measure & extent of enjoyment that the readers experience in reading a poem and maybe referring to others to read.

The present times are impatient times. There is facination for fast food, fast results, fast publication, fast appreciation etc. And they also are times of 'You pat my back and I pat yours' ! It is a harsh reality and one must be courageous to accept it.

I would humbly suggest my friends to diversify their writings; humans are endowed with a vast array of emotions, love being one of them. Try to write about other emotions too. Write less, write better.

Ravinder Malhotra
15-Apr-2011 07:14 AM

extremely good!!

Rupradha
09-Apr-2011 05:27 AM

touching indeed - lovely!

anvita
07-Apr-2011 19:24 PM

Absolutely so. The context is what matters most. My last remark was not critical, it was just a silly joke. The way your poem goes does not make the last line sound odd at all. It makes perfect sense and it is most touching.

dipankardasgupta
05-Apr-2011 00:54 AM

In Hindu mythology, Durga, Saraswati, Lashmi, Parvati etc etc are all celestial beings - inhabitants of the heavens ( Devi's ) and the reference by the lady in her blog could be a reference to any of the Devi's.

Men worldwide have considered themselves to be the propagators of their particular faith (Religion) and hence the emphasis on GOD being a male; The Hindus apparently have been more flexible and included the other sex in the celestial hierarchy !

It's a matter of perception and context.

Ravinder Malhotra
04-Apr-2011 16:06 PM

Touching indeed. I have been reading you for a while now. There is little doubt that you have a distinct style, structure wise. I like this style since I am not too fond of blank verse. Perhaps because it is far too challenging for me. Regarding this present poem, the last line, appeared to miss a syllable, ryhthmically speaking. Of course, I may be reading it incorrectly. I wonder if you meant it to be read as: "Are you --- God's wife?" instead of "Are you God's wife?"

Incidentally, I once came across a blog post by a lady where she kept referring to God as "SHE"!! :)

Best wishes.

dipankardasgupta
04-Apr-2011 02:13 AM

Touching tale well expressed!

kulbirbhalla
03-Apr-2011 21:23 PM