Mon poème - Collage

J’ai posté mon poème français à l’occasion de la journée contre le travail des enfants le 12 juin.
Aujourd’hui, ce poème en anglais est posté.

Collage /// Manas Basu

A boy of 12 years
Sweeps the table nonchalantly.
His boyish face is saddened while
His worn-out hands are in motion.

Restaurant is brimming with customers –
Parents guide their children
To pick up their favorites as
Their flamboyant dresses sparkle brazenly.

That boy serves their customers
Who are bursting into fun and frolic.
Here he sighs with a phlegmatic look.
Even unable to curse his fate.

Belching stomachs are satisfied
As they leave their tavern leisurely,
They have other amusements to share,
Before they are sheltered in cozy beds.

The boy clears the table for next guests
Ever pensive over a single thought,
When he will receive his ‘diner’!
Iota of left-out food –
Mixture of spaghetti and salad
Or a piece of mutton with some biriyani.

His naughty younger sister
And bed-ridden mother
Waiting at their makeshift shelter.
His drunkard father has already left them.
He is now in charge of his family
Sole responsible for their well-being.

The boy works there from morning to night
Oblivious of his childhood
Hope is buried from the beginning.
His sullied dress and rickety figure
Ever bent down with stupendous duty,
In return of a square meal and a paltry sum.

Yes, his is one of the stories
Of 55 million ‘Child laborers’ –
Dried up before blooming.
He is representative of a great country,
Which is ever proud to be called as
The largest democratic country on earth.

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