In The Traffic Of My Mind

You know why I'm crazy.....

In the traffic of my mind, movement is religion. No four-lane drives here - buses, bulldozers, bikes - keep squeezing through, road or no road. 

Thoughts splutter like engines rattling the head. Its a race to nowhere and everyone must win. Potholes scream. Tyres screech rape. Thick smog occludes vision and sight.

In the traffic of my mind, a cow leads one and all, controlling, regulating the chaos.

Flashing sirens trail bullock carts, 

tuktuks cut accross Mercs and Chevrolets by a hair-breadth, scratching restraint’s veneer. Expletives explode, fisticuffs fly. 

In the traffic of my mind, scooters zap through a micro synapse, sparking ire and fire. An anaconda of trucks and tankers, runs riot.

Blaring buffaloes plonk wherever they please, obstructing intellect, be it the busiest crossing or the narrowest street. If they decide to nap, all reason must wait.

In the traffic of my mind, all that’s urgent is stalled while aimless riffraff zooms past with glee. Rage honks the horn hard, confusion jolts, curses clash and collide.

In the traffic of my mind, green means go, yellow means go and  red means go too, 

as I look to shoot through space, like an idea in unhindered flight. 

Author's Note

Thank you for reading.....

Reviews

[Chris Shaw]

Wow, an explosion of movement, colour and noise. I love the image of the cow controlling the proceedings, the frustration, the heat, the sweat of those trying to get from A to B in chaos. Crazy, traffic travel, but it’s the noise that I find most jarring. I imagine the hooting of horns, relentless. Dear Divya if this is your mind’s traffic, I am more than grateful that my traffic is more gentle. Having said that, your mind journeys produce prolific poetry while mine are like trying to squeeze blood out of a stone at times lol. A cacophony of sound and movement. Plenty going on here. Happy Sunday dear friend.

Chris

[DIVYA]

Dear Chris,
For the past few months, I had decided I'd pen something on the Indian traffic and suddenly, there it was! Yes, the cow leads the way 😁 and here we learn to appreciate her because we have no choice. But the Indian road madness I don't appreciate and its as chaotic as my own hyper mind. This noise and chaos is a daily reality we grapple with. But now, its a thing of habit.

My heartfelt gratitude for appreciating this poem, my friend. I had felt it was a tad tedious. But you came along and lifted my spirit. Thank you so much!

Happy Sunday to you and your family too. Wishes for a blessed week ahead! 🌹❤️

[Mysilentembrace]

I love the way you combine things we don’t expect here. Using the chaos of it all to display the racing speed while creating the confusion and overwhelm when you add in things like animals. It speaks to that jumbled disarray as you try to arrange things and display creative sparks that are sometimes enthusiastic or without direction. It felt like the perfect story to convey an ADHD brain.

[DIVYA]

Thank you so much for such a thoughtful and encouraging review on this poem! You've appreciated the ADHD brain so well and indeed, its full of such unruly traffic. Your review means so much to me. Thank you! 💕

[JMichael]

Sometimes it is better to have plenty of congestion in the mind…..it means the mind is functioning at full capacity and that is always better than a mind that has no pedestrians, cars or chaos at all. A silent mind can be infinitely more dangerous than one that is full of movement.

As for those traffic lights, zooming through all colours will most likely result in a catastrophic accident, so take the time to pause on those reds and you’ll get to where your mind wants to be sooner or later.

This a creative way of using metaphor to illustrate one’s state of mind. Perhaps being that cow that leads one and all is the best spot in the traffic to be in.Taking the journey at a leisurely pace in an understanding that it’s the journey that is just as important as the destination.

[DIVYA]

Thank you so much, JM. I laughed out loud thinking of being the cow and yes I hear you because I drive at 20 kms/hour and let all the idots honk behind me. I don't understand what's their hurry!!!
Have a blessed day, planning for Poof.

[John the Baptist]

Very colorful imagery here to describe a phenomenon common to all of humanity. Our minds just can't stay still. I have wondered why we can't have just one orderly thought at a time, and I came to the conclusion that our animal minds regard stillness as death, and need to keep things moving to avoid it. That's why the Zen masters direct us to have and think one thing at a time.
PS: What is a tuktuk?

[DIVYA]

A tuktuk is a three-wheeler. We also call it an auto. its a kind of poorer taxi, painted yellow, green or black in India.
I love the point you made about our animal minds. Thank you so much, dear John!

[John the Baptist]

And thank you. I'll keep an eye out for a used tuktuk.

[jacob erin-cilberto]

Cool pic to go along with the poem.
Wonderful extended metaphor here.
Very clever paradoxes throughout. You make what seemingly should not go together have perfectly ironic marriages.
j.

[DIVYA]

Thank you my frriend. When you write such a fabulous review, its time for me to celebrate! You're so appreciated always!

[LisaCarol]

What I gleaned from this intriguing poetry was that despite the chaos, everything and everyone was still able to coexist. Differences are accepted and expected. Thank you for sharing your writing.

[DIVYA]

I love your review. Thank you for uplifting me so much! Dear LisCarol, thank you for making my day!