Salaam from my desi house

Full of noise and chatter

Smells of cooking

Spices and pakora batter

When I make the rotis

It’s got to be round not square

About twelve to make with five of us to share and care

Hard work living in an intergenerational house

Keeping space is not easy to do

Sometimes I forget and shout buzz off or Shoo shoo

But my parents are old and I’m not afraid

I fear for their health and try to be positive instead

OCD is now abundant via washing of hands

Including all the dishes, pots n pans

Food is a crutch, it keeps us going

As well as the daily walk to the local park

But as I make the journey the streets are bare and stark

Yet the big food shops are bustling

With people eager to buy more not less

So far were not in a complete mess

Lockdown is a way to maintain your humanity

I find peace in my own room where I can just be

Family life in a desi household isn’t easy

Particularly when you’re used to being free

We still have to be socially distant

Done in perseverance and insistence

Yet we’re still gong strong with the sharing over a hot meal

Eating separately but our hearts still feel

Life in limbo due to Covid19

Until it arrived, you wouldn’t have believed it till it was seen

So from an urban desi to a desi

I send my Hudafes, Greetings and Wa Laikum Salaam