Dr. Jaya tells us about three voices, during the pandemic. An evocative poem, exclusively for Different Truths

Voice 1: We had dragged our tired feet
With hurried hearts
Onto roads that lead back home
Dreams locked away in dingy rooms
We had carried our world along
In tiny bundles on our heads
We are the migrant labourers

Voice 2: We had drawn our feet back
With trepidatious hearts
Out of the busy labyrinths
Into the cobwebbed lanes of our self
We had not entered here since a lifetime
We found that little was still enough
We are people in lockdown.  
 
Voice 3: We finally put up our feet
With the now silent heart
We did not need to breathe
Released from the confines of existence
On its final journey back home
We unburdened the soul even of the pain.
We are the bodies in the blue bags.

Visual by Different Truths

Dr. Jaya Kapoor Chadha

Dr. Jaya writes along with travelling and doing theatre to explore pathways to her innermost self. She is a mother of a spirited fighter 12-year-old son for heroes can come in all sizes. She is teaching in the Department of English at the University of Allahabad.

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