The Decision Poem by Jagannath rao Adukuri

The afternoon shadows
Have slowly vanished
We have yet to decide
Our future and theirs
The evening is full of
Uncertain despondency
Nothing is clear, not even
Where we stand in the scheme
Perhaps we don’t exist
Or, may be, we do
Who knows, who can tell
There is a gentle rustle
In the coconut frond
Our hand fans fail to
Stir the wind around
Outside, in the garden
The squirrel runs up the tree
Soon a half-eaten guava
Falls to the ground
This very moment
We don’t understand
We are unable to decide
Soon the night will be on us
The crickets will chirp
As if nothing has happened
The crows will retire
Noisily to their nests
As if a gunshot is heard
Over the trees and rooftops
We have seen it many times
And heard it from our fathers
This is not the first time
We are entirely paralyzed
In our face and mind.