TEARS IN DISGUISE
As I turned to depart
it hurt so much;
it hurt so much;
reluctant to look back
lest my folks and friends
see the tears in my eyes
see the tears in my eyes
that I tried hard to disguise
and if I could make believe
it was just plain cold sweat.
Tall coconut trees
in the gentle evening breeze
tried to firmly hold their sway;
outside on the patio at sunset,
men were absorbed in conversation,
men were absorbed in conversation,
while in the balcão
the women folk convened
to plan paddy fields for sowing
in time before the onset
of monsoon rains impending.
of monsoon rains impending.
Then as darkness fell
and homewards I walked,
seeing a score of people together pray,
by the wayside cross I stopped;
light from the candles
reflected in their faces
singing in perfect chorus,
their gaze at the cross
fixed as if by magic;
hearing them sing the Litany,
and unable to resist
I joined them in harmony.
Tony Fernandes
Tony Fernandes
