Healing Treasure

30 hour express
A short stint on the Purushottam "Express".
3 tier a/c.
Before sleeping the second night we had a picnic of salad and chickpeas with puris.


Bhubaneswar Jan 6-9th -

My little room with cool green walls, brown door and ceiling fan (reluctant to work). Wealthy in its simplicity. Austere but not uncomfortably so. Rooming with weavers who ride their webs, clinging tightly. At the mercy of the wind and their own creation when the shutters are open...patient, waiting, waiting, waiting when outside airs do not come in. The sounds of the neighborhood drift in, especially the slap of feet on concrete as dance practice convenes next door.

The Search for Sweet Grass and the Short Cows
cows on three sides.
Orissa's cows are short
(2/3 the size of others)
with big tummies,
as though big cow parts were put in
little cow bodies.
They chew cud with distended bellies
even if underfed.
They seem a bit more adventurous

one leaves, walking towards me and longer grasses
her legs sink into marshiness,
she continues despite great difficulty.

Riding on the back of a scooter that evening
I see 3 other cows stuck and eating
Annie
From the front window i see and more often hear a raggedy version of Sandy. He - always tied up, never knowing grass - only a half moon of concrete - walking in circles, never touched or softly talked to, only teased by a 5 year old boy.
Next door at Guruji's
A treasury of poems,
not recognized as such by his daughter.
But for me,
a meeting with old friends
Blake, Keats, Wordsworth,
and good old Will.
Poignant and powerful
encountering them here.