the quiet days compose
of a walk, of palms meeting
the back, of nervous strangers
stepping on escalators, of shy
husbands and vivid wives,
of iced teas and lemonade
to beat the heat, of children’s
mouths splotched with ice cream
and of mothers’ dresses similarly,
of friends in sunny corners of
a park taking photographs,
of actors stuttering in their mind
before a long monologue, of
taxi drivers singing softly
on their last drive home,
of a kiss half-done, an embrace
unexplored, of stoic fathers
breaking into a laugh, of nerves
gently settling into the grass,
of losing balance
and arguments
in the train,
of seeing love blossom
during the wait.
Srishti Walia is a PhD scholar in Cinema Studies at JNU.
Featured image: Peter Conlan / Unsplash