His Mercedes Benz
I was standing in front of
A small roadside tea vendor,
In a city called Guwahati.
It was a pleasant morning,
In that otherwise dusty metropolis.
While I was enjoying a cup of ginger tea,
Under an exceptionally clear blue sky,
A big car pulled up.
A man got down and walked up
To the tea stall,
Ordered tea for him and the woman
In the front seat.
He was in a pair of blue denims, and
A well ironed white polo shirt.
I couldn't see his eyes.
He wore dark glasses with gold rims.
I shifted my eyes to the lady in the car.
A well groomed housewife, I presumed.
Then I saw a cute little girl in the backseat.
The man bought two bars of chocolate
From the shop next to the tea shop,
Walked back to the car,
Opened the car's rear door,
Gave the chocolates to the child.
He seemed to be in a hurry.
I saw one of the chocolate bars fell on the road.
He didn't notice it and closed the door in haste.
I walked up to him while he was hurrying
Back to the driving seat
and said -
Dear Sir, you dropped something on the road.
He looked back at me blankly.
There was no expression on his face.
He turned back,
Walked around the car's booth,
Picked up the bar of chocolate,
Ans drove away,
Without speaking to me.
I didn't wish for a word from him.
But then, I thought,
I would have said thank you,
If I were him.
Fair enough, for his indifference I thought,
Walked back to the sidewalk,
Lighted a cigarette to suppress
My harmless anger.
Then I remembered,
I once drove
A better car,
Humbler than
His Mercedes Benz.
Copyright ©
Ibohal Kshetrimayum
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