I WOULD RATHER READ NOVELS
If words don’t exude fervour
Or belch fire
If sentences don’t pierce the heart
Or blow the mind
If stanzas don’t evoke passion
Or awe-inspiring power
Will that be a poem?
They write something like:
Runner beans are flying
In the horizon
Covered by dark clouds
Leaving the city
As silent as a graveyard
And expect us to decipher the meaning
Why should I?
Let them go to hell!
They deserve to be stacked in bookstores
Not my shelves
I would rather read novels
Shit…
Am I writing a poem?
Translation, by author himself | 29 December 2005, London
Mishra plans to translate more of his poems after he retires from politics. His Nepali poems have been compiled in ‘Rabindra Mishraka Kabita’. Please go to the BOOKS section to find out more about his poetry book and where to purchase it.