Besieged in thick brick walls,
Protected from the sun, sand and wind,

I am away from reality.

Detached from the real people, real lives,
I live in a make believe world.

Where people, their situations and problems…
Everything is mere case-fact,
To be dealt with the learned tact.

I fit them in frameworks and models, apply concepts and theories,
Then analyse the concoction,
Under controlled temperature and humidity*,
I dish out solutions.

O My… what have I become?
Is this what I’ll do for the days to come?

In a few days, these walls will set me free,
In a few days, don’t know where I will be,

Will I live to sell few more packs of soap or
Few more litres of pesticide,
Or will I do something larger than life?
The question remains to decide…

————
*of air-conditioned classrooms