-S. Joseph

In my student days
a girl came laughing
Our hands met mixing
her rice and fish curry
On a bench we became
a Hindu-Christian family
I whiled away my time
Reading Neruda’s poetry;
and meanwhile I misplaced
my Identity Card.

She said,
returning my card:
‘the account of your stipend
is entered there in red’.

These days I never look at
a boy and a girl lost in themselves.
They will part after a while.
I won’t be surprised even if they unite.
Their Identity Cards
won’t have markings in red.

Translated from Malayalam by K. satchidanandan

Ed: Susie Tharu and K. Satyanarayana, No Alphabet in sight, Penguin Books, New Delhi, 2011 (Page 454-455)