If you thought that
A field of rotting tomatoes
Was the limit of the horror
Think again
Picture this:
You hear that the lockdown has eased
And work all evening till dark
With your wife and kids
Harvesting what is possible
Picking and choosing the best
To sell
(The slightly bruised or damaged
Will do for yourself and friends)
You negotiate with the driver
To leave at one in the morning
To beat the crowd of sellers
You reach the mandi
Only to find
That too many others
Have thought like you
There Is No Alternative
To leaving
Three hundred kilos of tomatoes
On the roadside
To fend for themselves
Surely all of us are complicit
In this horror story
Peculiar to our times