Wednesday 26 September 2012

Storm in a Tea Cup


Ella, at Poets United, has done it again. Wacky, last week and Weird this week. And she is brewing tea and making us feel envious of her cups. So, to be weird, I have run away with a plastic cup to the marketplace of ideas and here we have boiled chai. Please mind your lips. Weird is the codename.

~

 

It was a strong mixture of burnt tea leaves and water
From a cooking pot, steamy and lit,
Its lid chattered, unable to contain the heat

The boiling temperatures, exceeded beyond measure,
Could not relent
With a vengeance, perhaps to atone the cold outside
The lit firewood crackled, knotting up with fiery determination

Chai, as we call it here,
Would be served in plastic cups
Dexteriously handled by frozen hands
The steam whistling a warning
By the warm moist it exclaims on the parched lips

Ella, those expensive cups I have seen them
Though broken, dumped by the fences of my tajiri
By their reflection in the sun, I was reminded of
Fragility, the ephemeral being we all are
Not that I don’t have those cups, no no,
I have them and I store them in the cup boards
Reserved for my guests
My family could do with plastic cups anyway

Sometimes I think life is about chai
The temperature might be intimidating
But soon, its heat is lost
Who ever came up with the phrase
‘Storm in a tea-cup’ had me in mind
Now, I think I need to send him a memo
And ask if he meant my plastic cup or Ella’s









10 comments:

Sherry Blue Sky said...

I so love this, Salem.....love chai tea too! Love the special cups you reserve for guests, love "the ephemeral being we all are". Yes, much to reflect upon in this poem about teacups!!

echoesofthehills said...

Thank you so much, Koko. As always.

Grandson.

Ella said...

I love Chai and I love your poem~ Storm in a cup, wow what thoughts~ You know my haunted cups are tucked away. YOU can see them, but they are special and I rarely use this~ Off to face the Geisha! This was sooo good, pour me a cup will you! This has the bitter, spice, and sweetness just like Chai!

I loved it!

Mary said...

Salem, I have heard so much good about Chai Tea that I am going to have to try it. If I were drinking tea, plastic cups would indeed be fine.

ScottlB said...

I am a lover of Chai myself sometimes a cup of Lemongrass also, enjoyed the poem

S.E.Ingraham said...

What a lovely paradigm shift your poem creates with the storm in a teacup question and its many other images ... a very full and interesting poem - very nice ...

http://aleapingelephant.blogspot.ca/2012/09/i-dream-lake-and-you-v.html

Unknown said...

A nice telling ...especially the first 3 stanzas...

Chèvrefeuille said...

Wonderful written. Thank you for sharing.

echoesofthehills said...

Thank you so much my fellow poets for taking the time to read this poem and commenting.

It is fun to have you around these sacred hills.

~
echoes of the hills.

Bodhirose said...

I love chai too.. and love your poem and the idea of 'storm in a tea cup'....also love how you interspersed 'Ella' throughout your poem...very cute!

Post a Comment

Echoes of the Hills is all about you. I would love to hear your echo...

You Might Also Like

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

Disqus for Echoes of the Hills