Our regular
Long distance call
Rings
With a tone of urgency.
Dad and I collaborate,
Telephonically,
Working out solutions
To some technical glitches
That faze him.
He, narrates the specs
I, jury-rig the solutions
For a 11-year old desktop
That still sits proudly
On my study, back home.
He sounds alert,
Like a sentinel on his duty,
With mom’s best iced coffee
Working through
The complex mesh of
His veins and arteries,
While
The woolly-headed me,
Occasionally drifts off.
Concerned, he asks me
If I need to sleep.
A nonchalant
“Oh, All I need is coffee”
Is what I tell him,
But he chooses to listen instead
To the unsaid
“But somewhere in between
Office and cooking
And laundry,
I forgot to
Purchase the staples.
Again”.
A pause,
Longer than expected,
And it dawns on me,
Muzzy as I am,
That the parent in him
Will worry at
The prospects
Of my sustenance and subsistence.
Luckily, I have the solution
By now.
A dampened
“Good work”
And we chaffer a little
Before saying goodbyes
And goodnights.
A few hours,
And we will be talking again,
Greeting each other
Refreshed good mornings
And embracing
With our words.
Sometimes,
Home has a caller tune.
Thank you Jasbir
ReplyDeleteI like how your short lines echo the give-and-take of a casual conversation. I love the image of the iced coffee working through the "complex mesh" of his veins.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much Jennifer. It is pleasure to hear such encouraging feedback
DeleteI love this. It reminds me of my dad. We never, I mean NEVER, talked on the phone but I remember trying to help him with his printer problems via email. It was a whole new mode of communication and very precious.
ReplyDeleteI am glad you can relate to this.
DeleteI am posted some 500kms away from my hometown so phone is pivotal connection between me and my family. Very precious and very treasured