We Shall Travel Far and Wide

No, our pictures don’t look like we romp through life

With wine and laughter, stroking perfect smiles.

We escape somehow,

From clogged sinks stinking in spite

Creaky doors hastily shut,  

We escape somehow,

In long-planned shikara rides

Bargaining hard for a measly half-turn

In dull, dark waters of Dal.

We split a Fruit Cream into two

And spoon the last bit out

Into each other’s mouth.

We pant and wait

In rocks and mud

To clamber onto snow and fog.

We can be sledge-led

When we return

Pot-bellied and faux-furred

Purring in the trapped heat,

Not waiting for the sun.                                

But for now,

We shall travel

Far and wide

With wobbly suitcases

And measured allowances.