Counting the days

We used to count the days
Till the next vacation
When the hills wrapped us
In their white mists
And made us shiver delightedly
Despite the warm clothes,
Everywhere the smell of wet earth
A green outpouring,
A dam-burst of colours,
An undulating sweep of space
That was suddenly swept away
By something that kept drawing the curtain
Repeatedly drove away the sun
Till it gave up and left early
For the night that hummed in the ears
And made breathing heavy
As if we were still trekking,
We used to count the days
For the next big film, the next festival
Finally the nervous wedding at the temple town
Where the poetess fell in love with her god ---
The new arrivals, the beginning of classes
For the toddlers, a relentless looking forward to
The counting never stopping
Then suddenly turning back and looking at
How the days have fled, we stop counting
There is a slowing of the steps
There is more tarrying,
Lingering and wondering,
Wanting time to slow down
And move as leisurely
As when we have to go home
And do not want to go home.