Home//
Home they say, is a place,
That brings a smile on to your face.
With all the new buildings around,
The old green tinted assam type house,
Almost glares out like an odd eyesore,
But I still call it as my home that I adore.
Being flanked from shadows all the sides,
The rendezvous of the old house and the sunlight,
Has been simply denied.
The mosses feast on the resulting dampness inside.
Not that we stay there anymore,
For we too had moved out,
Almost a decade ago.
But nostalgia had biased my action,
Sacrificing common sense over emotions.
My neighbors often inquire-
"Why don't you demolish this ruin
and construct a new mansion?
The real estate is booming.
And also the old cottage is so out of fashion".
Oh these fools!
When will they ever understand,
That a home is much more than caprcious fashion fads to withstand.
But one of these days I will have the old cottage demolished,
An action I will inevitably hate,
I do admit.
May be, I too will construct a mansion,
For I even have my plans sanctioned.
But neither a mansion nor a castle,
Can ever replace the charm of an old cottage,
Especially when it rains,
And the music the roof sustains.
So let me adore,
One last time,
The sight of my old cottage,
As the deconstruction crew starts to,
Unleash the wreckage.
For home they say, is a place,
That brings a tear on to your face.
(c) Anurag Talukdar
I keep on bringing this in conversations with people, how the Assam type construction is endangered and will soon be extinct. It's very disheartening to see. I am very fond of this architecture.