In the Land of Opportunity

Long long time ago
When Vietnam in America meant Vietnam
I landed in the cradle of possibilities

I came from a land
Where every thing was defined
Which hand to use for writing
Which hand to use to eat
And who is senior and
Who can have a future and who will be servant for ever.
Every thing decided by birth and Karma

Every thing was already defined
The pencil was brown
The chalk was white
The car was Ambassador
Dinner and lunch were rice and curry
And the newspaper was Samaj
And dance was Odissi.

Every thing in life was already defined
I go to school, then to college
Then get a safe government job,
Get married to one I don't know
And have kids immediately
Raise the kids and then retire

Now
I landed in the land of possibilities.
Where any thing was possible
With no particular sequence bracketing the life
I can have kids before marriage
No kid after marriage
I can go to school after retiring
And I can dive into myriads of possibilities
What to do in life to actualize

In the land of possibilities
The limit is my imagination
What to eat
What to do in life
Where to shop and what camera to buy
What to eat for lunch and dinner.
To whom to be friend with.

The world inside me shudders
At the chance of exploring and exposing
To the land of possibilities
To enjoy science, in art and in travel
Myriad chances
To be some one great in life
Or lose it all and be a homeless
In the land of possibilities.

((*.*))
Babru
January 12, 2007