I took one straight look at him,
No words were exchanged.
We both smiled at each other, and I thought-
He seems normal!
We walked along a long winding road,
Just him, me, and a couple of birds,
that followed us closely because
he was dropping bread crumbs for them at every step.
I asked him if he had eaten dinner yet,
It was past 9 pm and he answered-
Perhaps I have.
Now I thought- what does that mean? Perhaps?
That can't be normal.
Maybe he is trying to hide something from me.
Or maybe he is mourning one of the birds that dropped dead halfway through it's meal?
I am afraid of asking what's wrong.
Maybe something is terribly amiss,
Maybe he thinks that I am too stupid to understand.
Or maybe he thinks that I am too weak to bear the news.
Maybe the game is too complex to be fathomed by normal minds.
Maybe he was in deep thought and
Maybe I had merely disturbed his silence.
Or maybe he was just annoyed by the silly question.
If "perhaps" is not normal, then can "maybe" be?
-Srividya
Feb 7, 2015