How are you, sir?
I was just passing by,
thought I might as well drop in
and enquire about your health, sir.
How is your stomach, sir, I am sure
by now it should be perfectly alright, sir.
And how is madam, sir
such a marvellous, gracious lady
I always look upon her as my mother, sir
Whatever she tells me is a command for me
so kind-hearted and down to earth,
even my own mother could never
inspire me so much in life, sir.
And how is your son, sir.
Such a dashing, intelligent, fashionable young man,
of all people I know, I admire him the most, sir
always in know of things, always so inquisitive,
always looks so majestic when he drives
his superbike through the crowded streets, sir
Yes, and what superb control, sir
he can be a fantastic film star, sure
and of course, any day he can become
a scientist, a doctor, a great entrepreneur, sir –
it is all your teaching, your grooming, your sacrifice, sir
and of course, it is all in the genes,
anybody cannot be like him just like that, sir.
I just came to know Little Sir had a cold, sir
I immediately prayed to God, how unfair it is
such small things like cold, fever, headaches
You give to me, Lord, instead
why should such things happen
to an important person like Little Sir, sir.
And how is the dog, sir, I mean Jimmy, sir
I even remember his name, sir
what a fine dog, sir, a superb dog
If you ever wanted to have a dog
then it has to be like him, like Jimmy only
I see you every morning, going for a walk
with Jimmy following, wagging his nice little tail
what a tail, sir, what a beautiful flourishing tail –
Such a lively, faithful and fantastic dog, sir
never barks or growls, never does anything at all
to anybody, always looks upon you so obediently
with such cheerful expressive transparent black eyes
You have perfect choice in everything, sir
That is my ideal sir – faithful and always cheerful
always ready to give your life for your Master –
That is my ambition sir, I even envy Jimmy, sir
always privileged to walk along side
such a great personage like you, sir
If I am born again, I should
Iove to be born as Jimmy, sir.
What else, sir. I was just passing by,
thought I might as well drop in
and enquire about your wellbeing, sir.
Did I forget to tell you something sir?
No sir, yes sir. You know everything sir.
May I now take your leave, sir
You must be very very busy sir
If there is anything worth doing by me
Kindly tell me, simply send a message to me, sir.
OK, sir, thank you sir.
We’ll meet again, sir
And God be always with you, sir.
*******
Notes: –
(1) Substitute ‘promotion’ with any of the following words – Foreign Tours, Hometown Posting, Best Employee Award, Out-of-turn Flat Allotment, Departmental Shields, Frequent HR Training etc – and see whether the meaning of the poem changes at all! !
(2) Jimmy can belong to anybody – your batchmate, flatmate, soulmate, mindmate, bodymate, friend, neighbour, colleague….anybody. Jimmy can be anybody.
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