The Green Rituals

The dogs in our street

were green

and feverish.

The street was a bowl

of fungus.

Below the water of our lives

in the street
lived our green rituals.

We cooked
and grew plants

for our rituals.

The dogs

that lived in our lives
waited for

the bread we cooked

for our green rituals.

From below the water of our lives
we would sing and dance
eat and sleep
and the dogs waited for

one night old bread
and believed

we had not eaten all.

Our plants waited for water.

After every prayer
we offered divine water to our plants,
and our use of it was ethical.

The water of our lives dried up
before we awoke to life.

Our dogs looked at us thirstily.
and stared at sky

barking hootingly

making us believe

tragic days were not far.

We lived both below and above the water.

Noons were for dogs.
Sunheat drove them seek shelter
below our green rituals.

Our pious plants were restless
when our dogs slept below their shade
leaning against their trunks.

Vinod Verma