The lives of others
The lives of others,
Seem to hold some fascination for us.
From the time we’re infants,
We’re made to serve stints,
In the shoes of others.
Whom we should either,
Strive to emulate
Or not be like at all.
We’re taught to look up to
Those who are higher (read richer)
Because that’s what we should aspire to.
On the other hand, we’re to ignore
Or actively avoid those lesser (or poorer)
Less we become like them, even more.
So we lump ourselves in
With the rich and the beautiful.
And count it a sin,
To let the “others” be anything but pitiful.
Examples of what would befall us
If we let the curtain drop
Or if we made a fuss.
Never stopping to wonder,
How the rich and beautiful too
Must lump us in with the “other”
Since we’re all the same from their point of view
And how our indoctrination smothers
Any concern or compassion
For the lives, of “others”
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Written based on the title of the book ‘The lives of others’ by Neel Mukherjee
