Little son and daddy went to the mountain

To search for sparkling water of the fountain

The fountain lies across the valley, hidden

To be trot along the path beaten.

But the path is hard and lonely too

The land is cold grey, the sky deep blue

Daddy doesn’t want to leave his son alone

To bear the dark hardship all on his own.

The darkness is so deep that daddy still shudder

His courage leaves him and he relinquishes his partner

He is helpless and weak, irritable and all

Nature breaks his faith and he fall.

But little son is not a deadpan bloke

His mind is too fast to let him choke

He’s sick of this pessimism and intangible danger

And he flies like a bird, paints like a painter.

The sparkling water is life itself

To have it means to purify himself

Little son falls in love with nature’s party

He must reach the water to those who are dirty.

He gallops his way along green pastures

Picking the scent of green grass and hidden treasures

He conquers darkness and wants no more losses

The water starts flowing from every mountain he crosses.

The forbearers of man beware,

Your offsprings shall not care-

The pulling them into line

Is not taken to be very kind,

Nipping their ideas in the bud

Will only make monsters out of mud,

Because they are not lame

They can burn you in their flame.

They are the forbearers of the clan,

The child is the father of man.

Today, in this world, children rich and poor are facing the greatest crisis ever. While the poor suffer in hunger, poverty and pain, the rich suffer in unsatiated fantasies of their predecessors. There is no denying the pressure put on children today as more and more people and families live with the irritation of unfulfilled desires. The craving for more has never been greater as it is now, in the age when you can buy college degrees and pretend throughout your whole life of pseudo-greatness. Man has created solutions for old problems and in the process, has created new ones, the biggest being the problem of choice. With menus full of options and half-witted literature, man is often tempted to delve deep into his imagination and draw conclusions all on his own. The negative conclusions that arise out of man’s fear and infidelity are usually taken as yardsticks of judgement, and the positive ones are treated as subjects of much skepticism. The only beings among us mortals who can truly burn all darkness in their path and scathe the non-believers with the undying light of a bright future are the children. So let them live.

“It should be noted that children at play are not playing about; their games should be seen as their most serious-minded activity.” – Michel de Montaigne (1533-92)

“When a true genius appears in the world, you may know him by this sign, that the dunces are all in confederacy against him.” – Jonathan Swift (1667-1745)

Dwaipayan Adhya