Meat

 

The day Tinku, the slum-dog,

manages an extra 100 taka

by begging — heads to

the poultry shop and

buys meat.

 

The day it rains,

Chaudhury sahib roars:

‘Cook beef and hotchpotch, begum!’

and mutters next:

‘Don’t forget to wear the red sari

after taking a shower;

you look ravishing in it!’

 

The day I learned to love,

crossing the flower market,

went to the butcher’s shop

and barked:

give me meat, bastard

else I’ll eat up the map!

 

Md Mehedi Hasan is a Bangladeshi poet who lives in the moribund city – Khulna. His writings have been published in The Daily Star, The Daily Observer, The Independent, The Wagon Magazine (Chennai, India), Arts & Letters – Dhaka Tribune.