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
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