The Silent Music of a Vanishing Countryside


In a nearby place I frequent,
a quiet country road -
paddy fields stretching  either side.
the road broken and  pitted with potholes.
I rode there time and again,
 often drove that road,
enjoying the peace and the countryside’s scene..

Jungle mynas  often walked
striding  along the roadside
while a cha - bora restaurant stood nearby,
run by a lone woman.

There, my wife and I would sit together,
relaxing over cups of tea and eating bora
watching the quiet countryside pass by.

But as time went on
private schools and houses began to rise
upon the paddy fields,
violating the laws -
but no one came.

Instead more and more buildings
continued to spring up –
motor workshops,shops,petrol pumps, restaurants- 
along the edges of the paddy fields
by the roadside

The paddy fields began to vanish;
the wandering mynas were nowhere to be seen.
So, the little cha bora restaurant-
The countryside’s agrarian character
and  its peaceful  rhythm  have vanished.
Copyright © | Year Posted 2026

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Goldsmith Avatar
September 5, 2026 at 12:29 PM
I enjoyed reading. "The Silent Music of a Vanishing Countryside" is a powerful/wonderful ~ write/story. Great Ending... Hope you are OK...  Have a lovely day writing away............
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