When Our Houses Are Not Our Homes

 When Our Houses Are Not Our Homes 

Dear Refuge

Creator of skies and land

Will I find You 

In the heat of a makeshift room 

up on the terrace

of my new landlord’s home?

Will I find you in the blistering walls 

In the dust and the grime 

That can’t be whitewashed clean?

Can I find you in the anthills and the soot? 

Can I find you 

When the water comes trickling in 

From heavy showers after heat waves

A large puddle of rainwater

That moves you 

To get to work 

Wring your mop cloth clean 

Dirt water through the drain 

The dirty floors polluted purity from the skies 

Will I find you

when I'm reminded to scrub the tiles clean 

and when I’m done 

To clear the strands of hair 


of my neighbours  

Tthankfully caught by the drain 

Clean up 

The effects of weathering 

On our shared lands

Our shared spaces 

Our lone efforts 

Why am I looking for something 

That can be taken away from me?

Can I see You 

In the paw print on the wall 

Of a cat that died before its time?

Will I play close to ten thousand rupees 

For 15 hours of my day

And find you provide for my landlords 

And for tenants like me? 

Without a home 

But still housed 

Am I asking for too much?

Am I complaining too much? 

The placement of a shelf 

Right beneath the table where you try to eat 

And read and write 

Hurts you at the knee every time 

Bow a little 

Bend your back 

Move to the side 

Cross your legs 

Adjust a little 

There you are 

Do what you need to do 

This isn’t poor craftsmanship 

You have more than you need 

Clean the shelves 

Line them with paper 

Clean up the cobwebs 

Wash the dirty old bathroom rug clean

Wash away the water blackened from the dirt 

and do it again tomorrow 

Wash yourself clean 

and get to work 

and pay your rent on time 

You can’t afford to be 

A day late

And you are 

Without a house of our own 

But not homeless 

*
Inspired by my first year of residential living in Thiruvananthapuram