Do you know ?

Depiya Thoudam
Honestly I couldn’t call back
The last time I was at school
Sitting together with my classmates
As close as we could be
No masks, no distancing, no pandemic
When will normal be, do you know ?
These online classes and video lectures
Would never be able to create
That joyful ambience of classroom
With all my classmates and teachers
My heavy duty backpack
Sat there all day long
On my old torn up couch
By now it would have taken
Enough rest and be ready again
To carry my heavy books to school
My school uniform in the cupboard
Now not my size anymore
But all cleaned and ironed
Just hung there idly
Waiting for school to reopen
My black school shoes
Also not my size anymore
Now they are dust covered
How many generations of spider
Had lived there, I don’t know
For how many days I have to wait
To get back to school
I don’t know, do you know ?