Just now,
The sun was a striking sphere
Of orange red -
A fiery ball,
All set in lyrics,
To rest in paradise.

And now...
Against this freshly
Stained back-drop
Of crimson,
Fire-like flames!
The sun is getting lost behind....

Grey gills, grey fins.
Grey mouths, grey wings.
Grey-haired faces,
With grey mouths and eyes
Of grey clouds,
Shaping up.

Ardent.
Bloated.
Well-meaning, grey clouds.
Now almost black!
Waiting to burst open
Grey stomachs filled with rain.

Mumbai
1998

Geeta Chhabra