{"id":4105,"date":"2025-07-18T16:21:21","date_gmt":"2025-07-18T14:21:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/smartmag.theme-sphere.com\/blogger\/bitcoin-ethereum-escape-broader-market-slide\/"},"modified":"2025-07-18T16:21:22","modified_gmt":"2025-07-18T14:21:22","slug":"one-day-i-flew-away","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/2025\/07\/18\/one-day-i-flew-away\/","title":{"rendered":"One Day I Flew Away"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One day I flew away<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And what did I see?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Lamp posts plastered with election manifestos<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Crisping at the edges<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the heat of the pre-monsoon sun<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Politics played second fiddle to the virus<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Roadside shutters opened<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To reveal aquariums<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bettys and cories<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Minnows and mollies<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Feasting on snails and brine shrimp<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Oblivious to the infected street beggars<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Squatting on the pavement<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Slum dwellers queued behind<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The municipal pickup<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For rations of flour and potatoes<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Rice paddies defied the pandemic<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But crops couldn\u2019t get<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Past lockdown patrols<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">And spoiled in poorly kept silos instead<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Teachers stayed up till <em>sehri<\/em> time<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To watch <em>Zoom<\/em> tutorials<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Hours of staring at a screen<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Gave them headaches<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even <em>Vicks Vaporub<\/em> couldn\u2019t relieve<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The merry-go-round stood still<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The candy floss pole disappeared<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The fairground gathered windfalls<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cStay home, stay safe\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Cartoon Network\u2019s new mantra<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sturdy hands massaged spatchcocks<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">With <em>tandoori masala<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Even though the virus<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Was claiming lives<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Naan<\/em> and <em>kebab<\/em> had to be ready<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the <em>iftar<\/em> rush<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bright orange spirals<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sizzled in a cast iron wok<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Fasting customers scrambled<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For Hashem Mia\u2019s famous <em>jilapis<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Social distancing floated away<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In open sewers<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The tailor\u2019s shears sat idle<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Threads unspent<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Bobbins untouched<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Who\u2019s the culprit:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Covid-19 or <em>Aarong<\/em>?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <em>jhal muri wala<\/em> gazed wistfully<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At clouds above<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The unusually quiet<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>Shapla Chattar<\/em> roundabout<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Business was bad<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Stolen guavas sufficed<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">His starving family of five<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">An expectant mother exhausted<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From sobbing all night<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Blood trickled down her thigh<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In the ambulance<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">She helplessly waited<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For the inevitable<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One day I flew away And what did I see? Lamp posts plastered with election manifestos Crisping at the edges In the heat of the pre-monsoon sun Politics played second fiddle to the virus Roadside shutters opened To reveal aquariums Bettys and cories Minnows and mollies Feasting on snails and brine shrimp Oblivious to the<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":5304,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[69,32,33,47,34],"class_list":["post-4105","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-poetry","tag-covid-19","tag-featured","tag-picks","tag-poetry","tag-trending"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4105","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4105"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4105\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5305,"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4105\/revisions\/5305"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5304"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4105"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4105"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/goodcompanylit.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4105"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}