Djembe - Concordia College

Kelly Pflaum
English writing & global studies-2012
32
City of Kites:
Agra, India
I sit on the rooftop terrace, watch the fading daylight–
oppressive air polluted, thick gray clouding the burnt sky.
Through the haze, patches of color emerge and climb, kites
in ruby, indigo, pink. The summer breeze must be just right–
every child in the ancient city guiding tethered fabrics to fly
from countless apartment rooftops into the fading light.
A boy on the closest building, bold against the stained white
brick–he unfolds nylon, struggles with a knotted string, tries
to raise the toy to greet the colors of a thousand soaring kites.
He runs forward, propelling a worn yellow diamond into flight.
I follow the swinging shape, watch it mingle with others until I
strain to see beyond the rooftop as the sun sets into twilight.
I think of these children, wonder what flying these kites might
mean if they were the children begging at the Taj Mahal–my
few donated rupees could have bought these colorful kites
that fly above the city, above locals and tourists who fight
their way down dusty streets. A car horn blasts through dry
air. I leave the rooftop terrace as twilight gives way to night,
as darkness overwhelms colors in the maze of soaring kites.