Black and White

Black & White Rain outside the kitchen Was filling up all her senses Heaviness could be heard from all rooms in the house Fragrance of it, filling up her nostrils and calming her soul Magnanimity of the pour dwarfing her tiny tears Days became shorter Night came in faster Every time it rained this heavily She could see dim lights slowly flickering on She was reminded of her childhood in the countryside Where she would splash in muddy waters and drench herself in the rains Carefree enjoyments of those times City bound the rain It was carefully channelized into drains And sent away before it could make its presence felt City bound everything You walked on designated footpaths and crossed roads only on zebra crossings Zebras with their black and white stripes often visited the grazing patch behind her house in the village Flip of a switch flooded the room with light Rain seemed dimmer outside She closed her eyes and sucked in as much moist air as her lungs could hold It was the last rain of the season She knew it, She could sense it At dawn the city would fall back into routine Rain would leave no puddles to play in Grey concrete roads would show little trace of it And people would be crossing roads at Zebra crossings And she would be waiting for the year to pass by So rains could visit her again And remind her of Zebras that crossed forests to graze in her backyard Back home