Up But Down -Part1

Up,but Down…Part-1 This bus old as this rutted road Panting to haul its sweaty load Moves along the steep gradient Of these hills stoutly determined Raising to heights which although small Are far like aeons beyond recall To the place men and maps from yore Call by a name now part of lore It stops and ejects a lone man Bearded, forlorn, bag and baggage A petty forest official Perhaps on punishment transfer To these hills, unfeeling and cold Where his ticket has taken him Which could take him no further, no less Away far away from sweet home To where it’s for predators home. It turns left, heaves off a U-turn Climbs on to a conglomeration Of tenements of refugees From a strife-torn island, whose hopes Are holding breath in another land Uprooted amidst the rooted All at sea amidst hardy rocks. And returns to the highway where The forest man still stands rooted Aghast where he was offloaded Like one of those gaunt and old trees Failing to find his way to those Who came before, missing the link With the before and with the now.