Dare to dream

Photo credit: Sudip Bhattacharya

I jump up high,

Beyond the realm,

As if the sky is beneath,

Twinkling are the stars,

A carpet of infinite,

My dainty steps are afraid,

Quivering I, a step up,

My feet on his hands,

Leads me to a window,

My dreams unravel,

Flowers of gems,

An ice cream mountain,

Melted chocolate dripping down,

My happiness knew no bounds,

Another window, a palace,

Butlers and maids rushing towards me,

Each room is a splendour,

Velvet curtains, upholstered chairs,

A king size bed draped with a veil of lace,

A marble topped table,

Beyond that a small window;

A hamlet I recognize,

Huts with holes on roofs,

Stuffed with plastic,

A wail so familiar,

My brother's cry for milk,

My father's hunched frame,

Shaking with bouts of cough,

My mother's reddened eyes,

Blank and crestfallen,

Rag picker I am,

Conscience reminded,

The few I earn,

Relief; a hapless mother feels,

Tears trickle, I beg the star,

Let my dreams remain inside,

Let me be with my brother,

ailing father and rag picker mother,

May be some day I sing,

I am beyond the realm,

The horizon beneath,

Leading from the front,

The world follows because I dare to dream.