Poem: Days like these

Today the world was gentle to me

No alarm clock

A natural awakening

As my slumber slipped away

The hammering of construction

Was joined in chorus to the wail of death

Neighbours congregated and shared a sacred space

Holding sadness hand in hand

An auto wallah willingly changed direction

So my friend and I could meet and eat dosa

Unhurried or worried about his next fare

A young couple

Offered up their seats

Without a blink of regret

Street side there hung a simple sign

Free buttermilk

Refuge from the beating heat

For those in need

A wizened stranger acknowledged efforts

To learn his native tongue

While collecting a steaming cup of chai

Appreciating my ancestry

Three pairs of puppy eyes

That welcomed me into their pack

Licking feet and wagging tails

Like long lost canine companions

Aroused from a siesta

With a loving, soft embrace

To homemade food of fond memories

The acknowledged heart twinge with

An old soul friend

Until we meet again

No technological interruptions

As my lover supported me

In immediate countryside cottage life plans

When everything goes right

Smooth as the cliche of a baby’s bottom

Days like these

I live for them

Days like these

I relish and hold in my heart