Songs for a Half-Escape
Author: Abhradeep Bhattacharjee
 
About the Author
20 year old Abhradeep is currently studying in Delhi. He grew up in Shillong, Meghalaya, and attributes this to have profoundly influenced his sensibility.
 
Teaser
Guilt
Guilt is bulky,
Foolish and moribund —
A maple-winged, dust-tinged creature;
Flapping and squawking,
Turning inside out
Within the pit of the stomach;
Climbing and crouching amidst aisles
Of irregular, vapid breaths.
Child of selfish glee —
With a gaze that spells out
A pathetic, atrophied kind
Of ruthlessness.
Regret is pallid,
Lame without deference;
And broken words
Limp to its rescue,
Their glances shifting,
Castigating…
Their reflections
Upon the bloody sheen
Enveloping a sinking,
Yet barely blinking
Carrion flame,
That burns your lips
And snarls at the candle’s end.
You despise yourself now,
With nothing left to forgive.
Contents
Love/Regret
Farewell at Midnight / 12
The Happy Couple / 13
Letter to Longing / 15
Sad Flowers in the Morning / 16
Remorse / 17
Recognition in a Market Evening / 19
The Bard and the Queen (Part 1) / 20
The Bard and the Queen (Part 2) / 24
The Most Beautiful Woman in All of the Land / 27
Tear / 31
A Warm Embrace / 32
Reflections/Observations
Old Lucius / 36
At the Prime of His Youth / 38
Calcutta ’20 / 40
A Tavern in Outer Space / 41
After Ascension / 42
Baptism by Suicide / 43
The Wings of the Stage / 44
The Moment of Escape / 46
Turn of the Century / 48
The Clamouring in the Poppy Fields / 49
The Image at the Beginning of the World / 50
The Blues Are Playing in a Faraway World / 52
Hallowed Ground / 53
Alone with a Raging Current / 54
Guilt / 55
September’s End / 56
Nuclear Winter / 58
A Plea for Peace / 59