One Winter Morning by the Village Road

On a winter morning, The village road lay quiet. Rickshaw puller Tolmu was then fast sleep On the grass by the roadside Behind his rickshaw Drunk from the country liquor vendor. Some goats grazed nearby. Cattle grazed on the stubble In the paddy fields by the roadside, While others stood lazily, Enduring the cold. At about nine, When the sun shone, dispelling the cold, People began to take to the roads; Groups of students were walking to school. Tolmu was still asleep, Enjoying the warm sunlight. Yet not one wondered, what had happened to him, For they often saw such a sight there. But his neighbor Fatima laughed quietly As she passed by in the auto rickshaw, Seeing him . After some time, he waked up And soon remembered : He was to deliver four bushels of paddy From the tenant farmer to the landlord Before the latter went to the office. But the time was late .