His Red, Red Rose

He runs to the stone bridge that connects his piece of land and the green foot path that leads to the village in one end and to the market in the other end. He raises his head and stares at the far end of the path. His heart tick-tocks, tick-tocks and tick-tocks. a lonely cloud floats stone bridge’s heat strokes his face his heart heats with love. He scratches his head, wipes his eyes and stares the left end and then the right end of the path. He knows that his red, red rose must appear from either ends of the path. He looks left; he looks right. Again, he looks right, and he looks left. His red, red rose doesn’t appear. larks warble above a fish hides in a dark cave his heart mourns for love. He raises his hand, bends his neck and checks his wristwatch. Again, he raises his left hand, gets it closer to his right ear, bends his right ear toward the watch - its dial - and listens. The watch tick-tocks, tick-tocks and tick-tocks. His heart now pounds: lub-dub, lub-dub and lub-dub. sun brightens his rays a swallow cuddles his love eyes brighten with hopes. He opens his mouth wide and yawns. He marches to one end of the stone-bridge. He marches to the other end of the stone-bridge. He stares at the right end of the green path. He pierced through the stretch of paddy fields and stares at the left end of the path. His red, red rose pops up from the right end of the path, from the village’s end. a cow moos for love a drizzle sweeps across the field his heart leaps up. He stretches his neck like a crane. He looks near; he looks far. “There!!" he cries. “There! She comes." Everybody around him hears his cry. Some chuckle. Some giggle. Some others cackle. But he doesn’t hear any of them. He looks on his red, red rose with his eyes, mouth and ears. light showers fly through dove tails dance tossing their heads love floods in two hearts. Let The Pens Flow – Haibun Poetry Contest Aug. 11, 2020 Sponsor: Jenish Somadas