Masked

Silent as a grave, the city breathes in isolation.

An occasional car zooms past echoing sirens

In the quiet air; as curious dwellers open their congested windows!

Dead in the city expands and warriors battle in the open,

Masking the crimson stretches to swell!

Shrouded in darkness, graves of saints and fakirs

Wait for their flock to assemble for remembrance.

In silence, prayers mount for mercy.

Amidst this crisis, some masks their brutal murderous arms

Upon fragile souls, spewing blood and hate;

While others tear their façade in similar

Old unchanged, spacious streets!

No counsel masks their senses…

Exploding insensitivities and insolence…

No sermons guide their conscience…

Mounding vicious masks; layers accumulate.

Cloaked in blues and whites and browns

Masked warriors endure their deceit with danger –

Saving lives; sheltering assurances, reassuring faith.

Calm and poised, they promise hope!

Rajdeep Pathak

April 29, 2020