FORGOTTEN HERO

FORGOTTEN HERO

My day has come to be remembered and be proud of.
The two most celebrated days of me, 26 Jan and 15 Aug.
26 Jan is here and I am here to be celebrated
I stand for you in the sub zero temperatures of Siachin.
I stand for you in the burning deserts of Rajasthan.

I take every bullet on my body without thinking twice to keep my country safe.
I not only give up the most productive years of my life for the sake of my country,
But also give up on the moments of joy of my own life for my countrymen.
Sometimes my child’s birth, his first smile,  his first tooth,  his first crawl,  his first walk
Sometimes I miss his birthday,  sometimes his results,  sometimes celebration of his prizes and sometimes his casual talk.

I see me children grow up in installments.
The call of my duty remains my first love and rest comes later.
Sometimes I have been unable to attend to my ailing parents, sometimes unable to give pyre to their bodies even.

Devastating floods or internal unrest, I never shy away from my duty
I don’t do it for free ration or perks that’s the beauty.
Ironically, when I come back to the reality,  its bitter than you can imagine.

Sometimes my land is forcibly occupied, when I am away
Sometimes my disability pension is kept at bay.
Sometimes people blame me of joining forces for free liquor
Sometimes I’m lathicharged for OROP when my bones are weaker
Sometimes I am mocked at , at that highway toll
Is this what I deserve just ask your soul.

Don’t respect me, but don’t belittle me as well
Don’t make feel that my sacrifices are futile.
Don’t shed a tear when I die, just be with my family when they cry.
My wife lost a husband,  my child his father and my father his son
I am your forgotten hero, who fought till his last breath till the battle was won.