I tried to be water
Creating my own path
Engulfing fertile lands
Forming breathtaking features on the globe
Encroaching the place where there used to be a villager's hut
Home to a million fish
Hope of a suicidal farmer and his family
But I could not
As I refused to be captured by a concrete dam
Because I cannot lose my dignity at the hands of tons of waste
And because I find my esteem diminishing if the clouds cannot bear my burden
and shower me on barren deserted lands
Where malnourished children await me with eagerness.
I tried to be air
Touching each living and non living soul
Flowing across the leaves of a still tree
Evaporating the sweat off a laborer's forehead
Or the moisture from the strands of wet clothes lined in a queue
Teaching a kite how to fly
Entangling a pretty lady's open tresses
But I could not
Because I don't want to blow dust into a passerby's eyes
Because I have never wished to be controlled by a ceiling fan or a cooler
And I have never wanted to become PA to monsoon or spring
I tried to be earth
Promoting growth of some extremely enchanting daisies and sunflowers
Promising a better harvest of wheat each year
Providing a strong foundation for buildings and structures
Becoming mother to all
But I could not
Because I cannot afford to become a junkyard
Because I cannot manifest myself into so many forms as dust, soil and sand, and still look the same
And because I cannot stand the thought of the rich confiscating me and the needy dying on my surface
So I feel I am satisfied being fire
Enflamed with shades of yellow, red, orange
If you play with me
Beware! You might harm yourself
If you want to go to war
I shall be your weapon
If you are hungry
I shall provide you with a meal well cooked
If you are cold
I shall give you all the warmth unasked for
If you want to celebrate
I shall light your candles
If you want to die
I will be the one to lead you to God.
My nature might be fiery,
Crude, raging or passionate
But you might be misleaded if you think that I am brutal
And if you are still afraid of me
Then you are free to go my friend
But do not return with an intent to change my nature
As I might char you in the process
Just as you would do if I would try to change your nature....
- Disha
