The first rains of this season captured on my mobile camera at Kensville Golf Resort, Ahmedabad .... Vanita Thakkar (19th June, 2022)
Rains enchant us, cool us, soothe us and elevate our spirits. But, rains are a survival challenge for the needy and homeless. Also, heavy rains and floods cause destruction, rendering hundreds of people homeless and starving …. Here are memories of rains that bring ecstasy as well as concerns ….
Tippy-Tappy Rains!!
Rat-tat rattling raindrops, trumpet on windowpanes,
Flutter-keys to untapped ecstasy, tippy-tappy rains !!
Showering, soothing coolness, embraces summery swirls,
Blossoming, blooming happiness within, quivers and unfurls,
On a study sleep-over, I was at a friend’s place,
Those early hurly college days of tippy-tappy rains !!
The sound of rumbling clouds or God’s chariot wheels ?
The flashes of lightning or flashes of His camera reels ?
Wonder-struck, I gazed outside at the lonely flooding lanes,
Amid silent hummings of heart and tippy-tappy rains !!
A terrifying thunder crashed and blinding lightning flashed,
And suddenly I sensed safety cloaks of shelter and realized,
The pains of those deprived souls, foodless and homeless,
Please, please be kind to them always, oh tippy-tappy rains !!
Rat-tat rattling raindrops, trumpet on windowpanes,
Flutter-keys to untapped ecstasy, tippy-tappy rains !!
Do be kind to the needy, homeless, oh tippy-tappy rains !!
Vanita Thakkar (15-16 July, 2022)
I wrote this poem for recital at an annual programme titled Megh Gunjan, organized by the Vadodara based literary organization Grantha Goshthhee this year on 16th July. This programme celebrates rain / rainy season and all poems presented in it are on rain / rainy season.
This year, 34 poets presented their rain(y) poems in Sanskrit, Gujarat, Hindi, Marathi, Urdu and Bengali.
Pouring profusion .... Vanita Thakkar (19th June, 2022)
The peacocks were out to greet the arriving rains .... Vanita Thakkar (19th June, 2022)
Background ….
The poem narrates an incident which took place on a very beautiful rainy evening during my first year in college as a student of Mechanical Engineering. I was at a friend’s place on a study sleepover. Both of us were finishing up our assignments for submissions.
The atmosphere was most serene and pleasant. Suddenly, the cracking noise of heavy thunders and lightning made me realize the safety we enjoy in being indoors during challenging weather conditions. At the same time, I sensed the plight of thousands of underprivileged homeless people who may not even get proper food in such weather conditions ….
Also, heavy rains cause floods which render hundreds of people homeless and helpless, struggling for survival.
Even this year, as I wrote this poem, the television news broadcasts were flooded with the news of floods in various parts of India, including my home state Gujarat. While rains are most welcome and necessary, the destruction that occurs when they go out of control and the helplessness of the poor affected lives - human as well as all other forms - is heartrending.
There is an appeal to the rains, in the poem, to be gentle and kind - especially to the needy, homeless and helpless lives.
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