Long back, father told me
not to get myself locked inside.
‘Go, see the world, meet humans’.
I went out
Met many persons; —
tall, short, thin, fat.
Fat, short, thin, tall.
I met many Advertising Boards; —
on the side walk, above.
I met people crying
I met people dying,
giggling and dancing.
I saw dazzling flowers; and
melancholic brown leaves;
crazy prying animals.
I came back and started packing again.
And told a bewildered father,
I need a long journey for spotting humans.
Aneek Chatterjee is a poet and academic from Kolkata, India. He has been published in reputed literary magazines and anthologies across the globe. He authored 15 books including three poetry collections and a novel. His third poetry collection “of Ashes and Persiflage” (New Delhi and Kolkata, Hawakal) came out in November, 2020. Chatterjee has a Ph.d. in International Relations; and he has been teaching in leading Indian and foreign universities. He was a Fulbright Visiting faculty at the University of Virginia, USA and a recipient of the prestigious ICCR Chair to teach abroad. His poetry has been archived at Yale University. Contact: [email protected]