by M.Mohankumar
1. FOOT IN THE MOUTH
Whenever he opened his mouth,
he would put his foot in it.
It has always been so.
Except once – when he was
sitting on the dentist’s chair,
mouth wide open, the dentist
pulling out a decayed tooth.
2. WERE YOU NOT..
‘Were you not the civil servant
that you are,
what would you have been?’
‘Surely not so civil
Not so subservient, Minister.’
3. RETIRED
I was tired,
so I retired.
What a treat
this retreat!
4. DIGGING HIS OWN GRAVE
There he is, hard at work,
digging, digging.
I wonder why
he is doing it himself,
when there are others,
ready with the spade,
waiting.
5. THE PARAMAHAMSA
Look at the two cranes,
flying so gracefully
in the cloudless sky.
Seeing such a sight,
the Paramahamsa
fell into a trance.
We remain unmoved.
Mohankumar has published seven volumes of poetry in English. His poems have appeared in almost all reputed literary magazines in print in India. His first collection of short stories in English will be brought out by Authorspress, Delhi shortly. Mohankumar retired as Chief secretary to Government of Kerala.
