Searching- A saga ✔

15- That fallen Lotus

A/N : This poem will have certain phrases and words in Tamil (those words are in italics), coz this is set in Chennai, but the translation is provided in brackets

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I walk through the cramped streets,

Of my hometown, Chennai,

Ranganathan theru, (street)

My paradise,

The street is filled with novelties,

From Sarees, the colour of Rainbow,

To mouth watering confectionery,

To gilded ornaments and

Home decors.

Vendors and retailers ,

Spreading out their merchandise,

In a vast array of in-orderly orderliness,

This was a crampy place, sure!

With smoke and sweat mingling ,

With inhumane cries of vehicular fatigue,

But again the creativity of the disarrayed,

And the originality of conservatism,

Never fail to galvanize me.

Paradoxical, I suppose....

I march upto a nearby stall,

Showcasing large dangling earrings,

That sway in a phantom breeze,

The ones with large red stones ,

Instantly capture my heart,

And the small pearl studs seem to wink at me.

Those Jimikis, yonder, are my all-time-favorites, (Earrings with umbrella shaped hangings)

With glittering blue and yellow stones.

I sigh and turn to my left,

"Look at that Jimiki, Kanna,

So beautiful,illa? (no?)

 They remind me of you,

The blue and yellow gems."

I tell no one in particular,

Except that Lord of mine,

Who I hope would have heard,

My Kanna, my Krishna!

I saunter to the next store,

Crammed with people,

Studded with women,

Who were eagerly trying out bangles,

Rows upon rows of bangles,

Glass and metal and plastic,

Spirals of them,

Like spring flowers in bloom.

I pick out those golden ones,

That have tiny mirrors embedded,

And ask the vendor,

"Evvalavu, naa?" (How much, brother?)

"One fifty rupees, maa."

Too costly, I think,