Poem: Dubai Diaries — Part 4

So, the final part of the Dubai Diaries is due. Tomorrow I will be boarding the flight to India and plan to return in a few weeks if all goes well.

The final two poems are contrasting as one is about the seductive qualities of Marhabah City, Dubai, and another, the realization that our children are our privilege, and we ought to mend our ways.

Poem 14: Dubai, the Seductress

I wrote this poem based on Priya Patel’s response to this picture that I took in my hotel’s lobby. Dubai, the Marhabah City is indeed the seductress.

The Seductress

Right in the middle
Catching my eye
A glamorous golden glint
Twisting and turning thrice
Like a ballerina performing
Yet, the loops are so complex
More than meet my eyes
Much like the Marhabah City
Glitzy, glamorous and galvanizing
A world much deeper
Shadows and blindspots
The unknowns beckon
But too good to pass
For I shall return again
Only to fall on her lap
Writhing in pleasure
Writing a few verses
Enchanting moments again
Oh, the Marhabah City
is welcoming me again,
Dubai, the Seductress.

-Ashok Subramanian © 2023

Poem 15: Dear Precious Child

While walking around Burjuman Mall in Dubai, I stumbled upon a wonderful show called Burjuman Mall Rising Stars Season 4. The show consisted of kids between the ages of 5 and 16 singing songs in English, Arabic, Urdu, Hindi, Persian, Tamil, and Malayalam. They were all dressed in sparkly and shiny dresses, but when they took the stage and sang, they captivated the audience of over 500 people.

While I was listening to their beautiful melodies, I couldn’t help but think about the children in war-torn countries like Israel, Palestine, Russia, Ukraine, and elsewhere. Children have given us this beautiful planet, and it is our responsibility to protect it for future generations.

With that in mind, I would like to share a poem I wrote dedicated to all the children, both near and far.

Dear Precious Child…

Dear Precious Child
My words cannot fathom
your preciousness
This beautiful blue planet
belongs to you
As time moves forward
Only in the future
And you are the future

We have loaned this planet
For our fickle existence
There is no way
we can repay
this debt with our lives
Your pure innocence
Your precious existence
Your smiles and shenanigans
Your infinite wisdom
Your birth through us
Our privilege to be your parents

But somewhere…we forgot
our humble locus standi
We lost our focus
Wars, hatred, violence
We have committed sins
that we still can’t fathom
For our gruesome misdeeds
you, our future, suffer

If we could do one thing
For us to set all these right
We just have to return
to the path of love
Forgiveness and tolerance
Acceptance of diversity
too complicated for us
But your infinite wisdom
This is a simple and obvious thing
What this Marhabah city teaches
embrace hatred with love.

- Ashok Subramanian © 2023

My 11-day trip to Dubai draws to a close tonight. Before I board the flight, I would like to share that this is a maiden attempt to create a poetic travel journal, and hope you all enjoyed it.

~Ashok Subramanian © 2023