By Gautami Govindrajan
someday
weeks from now
i will bottle this memory
to take away some of the sting
of pandemics and disaster
nostalgia will rain down
on our hair
like little flakes of snow
the wind will catch
some of the music
the happy man in the stall
two streets down played
someday
i will sigh, wishing for
the simple joy of
hot rice in the biting cold
the relief of hard concrete
to sit on after
walking too long
and shared laughter
by girls having the
time of their lives
the anticipation of
what shall we do next
sweeter than the churros
you ate hours ago
someday
maybe the photograph
of us in the mirror
will be vintage fare
in this busy market
perhaps women like us
will look at it and wonder
what made these three
smile so wide
warm as sunshine
in the midwinter
happiness frozen in pixels
for all of eternity to see
but someday is
days, years, eons
from now
where the sky is
bruising blue
where lights are dancing
with christmas music
i look at the girls i am
walking with
and today
is beautiful, magical
enough
for me to forget my worries
about someday