Dr. A. V. Koshy - Two Poems

Exile on (a) Side Street

I am not that exile
the Stones sang of
or one of the great dissenters who had to flee
to save his life
like Nabokov or the others
of that ilk from Russia or Germany
or more recently
like Rushdie or the Chinese
or all kinds of others from various countries
or one of the proud writers
who later became great
in their self-imposed
desertion
of religion, country, sometimes language
and even family
in silence, cunning
or like Beckett
or Eliot or Pound et al;
that whole irksome great writing love-hate mod lot.
I'm just the wandering-
should I say Jew?-
minstrel or bard,
alba, serenade and nocturne
all I can do...

I'm just an exile
on (a) side street
listening to the organ grinder playing his tune
while that male monkey wearing that girl's dress sneers
and I weep, lost; in some strange- sounding lane

Your breasts are the fairest ones, my love
My sweat turns to blood over here, my love
Away from you and the distant home's hearth
For gold for you and our children, three
And the fire to burn brighter, "gash gold" saffron
Gold made from turning these "thistles" to wealth
Yes, I have learned "alchemy," my love
And this is my "tagelied" for beautiful you...*

*For you, Anu




Dirty Picture, Dirty Poem

1. When you took your life
did you foresee
this travesty?
Do they know how Silk
is made by/from its worm?

2. And you
Knowledge Boy*
showing your 'teacherly' tits
for all to view,
do you foresee?

3. Psstt!!
Dirty pictures
of both of you
in Delhi's
undergound scree**
glazed snapshots, post(playing)cards
to be handled, shop-worn
later soiled, and torn
and tossed apart
into the garbage bin
stained, and used
repeatedly.

Then
incinerated
carelessly.


*Vidya Balan
**Palika Bazaar/New Delhi



Dr A.V. Koshy is presently Assistant Professor in English Language and Literature in Jazan University, Faculty of Arts (Girls), English Department. He has published a book, research publications, articles and several poems. He is crazy about Jesus, his family, poetry,art, literature, autism, chat, gadgets, the internet, teaching and music in more or less that order.