Stories By Fire

A little bit received,

A little bit of search,

They share their life stories.

A moment of laughter,

A second of grief,

Oh! They share their heartfelt stories.

She talked about her battles,

He spoke his struggles;

He had lost his parents when young!

She swelled with pride,

When she flaunted her bruises;

’Return gift’ for the bottles she flung!

She made a narrow escape

From violence and abuse,

And now she was seeking shelter somewhere!

He had dodged the cops and the hoodlums alike;

Casual jobs during the day, with a few hours to sleep,

He was a night watchman for the ‘ghetto’ there!

They talked about their crushes,

They spoke about their dreams,

They also knew ‘Slumdog Millionaire’,

They laughed and bantered,

If either would win the lotto,

And rescue themselves for much better.

The fire that stoked there,

Was not just heat and light;

It perhaps was the dance of courage!

To an endless passion for life,

To the spirit to revive,

Rewrite their life’s next page.

For tomorrow is a myth,

Gone by was a blithe!

They didn’t have tears or frets for the past,

They could look up to the sky,

They could hold their heads up high;

And wait for a signal from up vast!!