WORDS AFTER SEPTEMBER
We will not be quiet, Lord.
We will not hide in books,
Under our desks, Lord.
We will not whisper
In the rowdy street.
We will hop
On our “three-wheelers,”
On the Morning Express,
Wheel up the ramp
And fly beyond
The limits
Of our comforts.
We will explore again,
And find ourselves
Lost again. Yet,
We shall hold our hands.
Yet, we shall love
Our neighbor.
Yet, we shall stand
On our dad
And mum’s shoulders,
And we will play yet again.
Let us now honor our dead,
The Earth’s dead.
Let us not tremble.
Let us not be quiet.
Let us not stammer
Through a million
Emergency sessions.
Let us talk
To the bird in the tree,
The bird in the sky.
Let us sing as a flock,
In congregation.
We will
and shall
And can
and must not
Be overcome.
Let us walk out tonight,
Tomorrow, and sing
We will
and shall
And can
and must
Not be overcome.
Let us go to the films
On Saturday,
To worship any day
We wish.
Let not these burning towers
Be our metaphor.
Let us honor our dead, yes,
And let us build and rebuild
Our metaphors.
-- Indran Amirthanayagam c)2001 Chennai, India, September 27, 2001
