OIL IS GOLD
(A POEM WRITTEN IN A BANKRUPT COUNTRY)
- Kamala Wijeratne
(Sri
Lanka)
Oil is gold
SO it is told
But not believed
For it was burnt
In streetlamps
Along the road
All day long,
Worked out in ACs
And fans that turned
Full circle in offices
Where
The tables and chairs
basked in glory
Their owners roamed the
premises
Paid due respects to the
powers that be
Or had a cup of tea
Oil was spent
On neon signs and rich
fiestas
On multitudes of cars
Owned by the leaders
Of a bankrupt country
The motherland mortgaged
And signed away as surety
They spill the oil gold on
the highways
****