A Year Later

It is 26/11

A year has rolled by, since India’s 9/11

We wear white to mark respect for the martyrs

Candles will be lit and prayers will be said

Extensive video clips and images reign the news channels

A Year has gone by, and we wonder if much has changed

Tomorrow the media will forget

And re-surface a year later

And as the ritual continues, one thing is for certain

Families of all those martyrs

Will wonder if their loved ones died in vain

The children of all those policemen

Will wake each day knowing their fathers won’t come home

And so is the story of this nation

That forgets and remembers, when it is convenient

The Kargil stories lived only for a decade

The Tsunami relief plans lasted but a year

Beyond differences of caste and religion, now lie educated lies

We live with the hope that some day

Somewhere, something will change

That we will work together beyond our diplomatic differences

Beyond our cynicism and lack of faith

And it is in light of that hope that we light a candle

And spread a word of gratitude

For all that we’ve been blessed with

Ironically, Happy Thanksgiving.