25 and Disappointeed: Two EMIs

One pays EMI for a second car,
One prays their rent doesn’t go too far.
One signs deals in air-conditioned towers,
One stands in queue for overtime hours.

One upgrades leather seats with ease,
One eats last night’s rice and peas.
One clicks “Buy” with a platinum card,
One skips meals, life running hard.

One posts pics of home by the lake,
One breaks their back for a one-room stake.
One books retreats to cleanse the soul,
One counts coins to meet the toll.

Two EMIs.
One for comfort.
One for breath.

Two EMIs.
One chases luxury,
One escapes death.

One frets about taxes and stocks that dip,
One clutches loan papers with a bleeding grip.
One complains about fuel price hikes,
One walks five miles on broken bikes.

One buys homes for a future unborn,
One begs the landlord to stretch the month long.
One has a spare room just for art,
One has three jobs and a heavy heart.

Two EMIs.
One for granite floors and view,
One for leaking roofs and school dues.

Two EMIs.
One cushions dreams,
One buries truths.

And the world keeps selling this lie:
“Work hard, you’ll touch the sky.”
But only one side starts with wings,
The other just learns to survive the sting.

So don’t tell me it’s fair.
Don’t call it a game.
This isn’t ambition.

This is shame.

Two EMIs.
Same monthly due.
Two lives.
One broken truth.

P. S. Thanks for ChatGPT for creating this piece

Comments

25 and Disappointed: Survival should not mean Struggling

There are days I wish I could just leave my job. But I don’t do it. Because I need to pay my rent. I need to eat. I don’t have any other income. I am afraid that I am not alone in this. I see people who are smart and talented - doing things they don’t love. They settle. Not out of choice, but out of fear. The fear of being homeless, being hungry. They live in a world that demands payment of bills more than anything. That brings a simple, maybe naive thought: What if food and shelter were guaranteed for everyone? What if one need not be working just to survive? Is it wild to wish for these? Are these not the basic human rights… If the basic needs were covered, what could we become? Artists, teachers, thinkers, healers - they are made out of passion. People can volunteer more, care for the elderly, innovate better, or take time and get a chance to do things slower… The working class would not have to burn themselves to keep the lights on. The poor wouldn’t have to beg. What if peopl...

Bye-bye strict timetables...! - The Bloggers League 2022

Author: Rama Subrahmanyam (ramasubrahmanyam.m@gmail.com) When we are planning for multi-tasking, we divide our time and allocate it for each task. That is a great thing, as it gives a chance for incremental growth, eventually getting compounded... Scheduling makes us punctual; sometimes forces us to be punctual if someone is counting on us, say an examination, office meeting, so on... Besides strict things, some activities should happen at planned times, like sports, gym, etc. But, we still have things, that can be done in our free time - say reading books, solving puzzles, or learning something of our passion. Should we also maintain the timetable in those cases...? Well, may not be that necessary... We get used to a task at the same time if we have a strict timetable; In a way, can also affect our peace... Suppose due to urgent work, we missed a task - We may develop a bad feeling, ...

25 and Disappointed: I do not want to negotiate

I’ve thought about it more than once — what I’d do if I ever got a raise. People say, “Don’t settle. Ask for more. You’re worth more.” It’s become a mantra in today’s world, especially in the corporate space. Negotiation is considered self-respect. Hustle is a badge. More money means more success. But I don’t feel proud thinking about it. I feel something else. I feel uneasy. It’s not that I lack ambition. It’s not that I don’t want comfort. It’s that, somewhere deep inside, a question keeps echoing: “Why am I earning this much when so many others earn nothing at all?” And if I ask for more — if I negotiate — what am I doing, really? I know it’s not wrong to want fair pay. But what is fair in a world that’s anything but? I see delivery workers biking through heat and rain, risking their lives just to deliver my food. I see sanitation workers cleaning up after us while we barely offer them a glance. I see parents in villages sending their kids to school with half-f...

The Eternal Thing

Search This Blog