They sat, with their cosmetic smiles, around
a huge table full of magnificent plates 
made of the wood of diplomacy
and polished with deceptive colors reflecting 
honey quoted images  
bowls full of crafty spices topped up 
with straw berry flavored ice cream 
spoons and forks scratching the soil
of self respect
with lips releasing back-boneless reverences 
and with a variety of edible items
glittering as war booties
with magnificent jar carrying 
cocktail of wines fermented carefully 
in the distilleries of mighty hands,
they decided to draw some lines
on blank papers (future sovereign territories
of nations)
and to make certain constructions 
necessarily not on  any geometrical pattern
found in any book of sanity,
they did so with an imaginative skill
that is never found in any poet. 

With the last sip 
they finalized some constructions 
and stood up.

They took mouth-freshener
and whispered 
like friends who were former enemies:
“Fighters were doing an exercise in futility,
As they do in fake encounters. 
We’ve corrected nations.
Now we’ve maps.”

They had to give a message 
to people—women and children—
and they did so:
“War is no more.
All are for peace.”

People—women and children— 
waiting outside didn’t break their silence
they didn’t break ‘peace’
brokered by much pain,
but they feel frustrated 
on their failure in finding the exact dish 
that their great leaders had taken
and turned to be peace lovers so soon.

Two women of neighborhood 
knitting sweaters for their men
(They’ve never heard any news
of their men’s whereabouts.)
expecting their return from the war soon
humming, “Now we’ve maps.” 
these simpletons don’t know 
that butterflies had already flown away
long ago 
and only flies were buzzing around
the table where cartography was done.

---

O.P.Jha writes poems and fictions. His works appeared in many journals including The Indian Literature, The Daily Tribune, Rigorous, Mantis, You Might Need To Hear This, etc. His poems have been selected by The Elevation Review and The LKMNDS Podcast. He is the author of an inspiring book, Management Guru Lord Krishna. He has a Doctorate degree in Translation Studies. He has also translated books of two Turkish writers: Ahmet Hamadi Tanpinar and Yekta Kopan.

Email: opjha189@yahoo.com

Twitter: @OPJha17