I Dig the Earth

Maati Khunre

Sthayee
I dig the earth and bury my mistakes;
Many, so many they are, alas!
Your eardrops, not a drop of water on them,
Rolled down and got lost in the grass.

I spent all day looking for them,
I and my deep-sea-diving mind.
Stolen hours
Earned by me, and no I still couldn’t find.
Sa-Ni-Dha-Pa-Ma

1) Switched on the sound of water stream
To forget unfinished tasks of many lives and just dream.
When did September get drenched?
When the Rangon flowers sway,
Hold aloft the kite-less sky
Let the colours play.
Sa-Ni-Dha-Pa-Ma


I dig the earth and bury my mistakes;
Many, so many they are, alas!
Your teddy bear, not touched by a drop of tear,
Rolled down and got lost in the grass.

2) Ancient chains shackled my feet again
As you sang your setting sun refrain.
Your song made me realize
Our experiences are kind of amphibian.
Paper boats and history notes
The answers, at last I found them.
Sa-Ni-Dha-Pa-Ma

I dig the earth and bury my mistakes;
Many, so many they are, alas!
Your eardrops, not a drop of water on them,
Rolled down and got lost in the grass.

English Transaltions by Utkal Mohanty