Day at the beach
A favourite game we play on the beach
Etching our names in sand
With fingers then twigs, larger and larger
Till they become
Giant imprints of our miniature lives
You write your name, I write mine,
Then I write your name, you write mine
And then we clap our hands with glee
As a wave comes and wipes them away
So fickle is our attachment to our identity
Then we start a new game – building sand castles
Each turret, each arch, painfully carved in great detail
You become the king and plant a flag,
I refuse to be queen consort, I want my own flag up
Take out your sword, you say, and let’s wage a war
We fight for a while and then burst into giggles
As we watch a giant breaker demolish our prize
All day long, we play games,
Some learned, others imagined
Then we wash ourselves in brine and go back home, hand in hand
Nupur Chaturvedi 
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