A Poem by Smita Sriwastav

See-Saw Dialogue

She sat on this swaying plank
with quicksilver moods,
its temperament reminiscent
of a confused pendulum,
munching on peanut moments
as it weighs life's pros and cons,
with a weird boy
his hair spiked as a porcupine,
barely familiar from
earlier trysts in this park.

He wore a wide grin
as the ones seen on potato smileys,
emerging from frying pan promises~
so too intrigued to bother
about familiarity she asked him
the reason for his delight,
wondering what was so special.

With a saucy wink he recounted
a visit to an amusement park,
regaling her with descriptions
of the most amazing rides in the world,
as she felt her gaiety seep out
from her pleasant evening
making it dull and insipid
as she yearned to savor
the delight alluded by him.

She sat forlorn, wishing she could
visit this amazing place of fun n' frolic,
aware it would be deemed
a wasted, frivolous expense
by her strict and pragmatic parents,
when a girl in freckles and pigtails
peered at her to inquire
if her brother had been bragging again.

The boy had a penchant
for telling tales~the taller the better,
about things he'd heard
at his father's barber shop,
pretending to be richer and luckier
than he was just to feel grand,
making her realize
her foolish gullibility at
ignoring the joy of graffiti skies
and leisure moments with friends,
behaving as the frenzied moth
unaware of golden glow of the lamp
as it pines for an indifferent moon . . .

Smita Sriwastav is an M.B.B.S. doctor with a passion for poetry and literature.  She has always expressed her innermost thoughts and sentiments through the medium of poetry.  A feeling of inner tranquility and bliss captures her soul whenever she pens her verse.  Nature has been the most inspiring force in molding the shape of her writings.  She has published two books Efforts and Pearls of Poetry and has published poems in journals like the Rusty Nails and Contemporary Literary Review India, four and twenty, Paradise Review, Literary Juice, Dark Matter Journal, Torrid Literature, Milk Sugar, vox poetica, the Shine Journal, Daily Love, Rainbow Rose, Life As An, Inclement Poetry Magazine, Red Poppy Review, Blast Furnace and many more.  Her poetry can be read online on her blog, Rain-Chimes~My Poetry Blog, http://drsmitasriwas280.wordpress.com/