The Snake Charmer

A vagabond once in a colorful ‘kurta’ And a turban wound round his head Came into my house, one afternoon A snake charmer, Carrying pretzel serpents In a wicker basket, The slimy things coiled inside. At our door step, he put down the cargo Begging my mother to allow a show Sitting on haunches, He removed the lid Three serpents were huddled inside As soon as the cage was opened, They unwound their folds and came out On the tiled floor, they crawled round Slipping and slithering awkwardly One was a cobra, long and tawny Soon it stood erect and opened its hood Hissing kisses with its hungry tongue The charmer gently blew on his horn In the lulling music The snake began to dance My eyes bulged out in utter disbelief Bewitchingly drawn to that mesmerizing scene It was at that time my father came With fire in his eyes, he shouted at my mother “How dare you allow this here! Are you playing with imminent death? Stop this nonsense and let the man, go” All were stunned and my mother shrunk back Putting the snakes back in his basket, The man was about to leave My compassionate father didn’t forget To give him a generous tip, feeling pity For a man who was out with a risky job To eke out a living, encountering death face to face Still the memory lingers, raising fears 8.Jan. 2022 The Snake Charmer Poetry Contest Sponsor-Kal Michael Neumann