He said wake up it's time to leave
The sun won't be out another two hours from now
I said let me go back to sleep
He left me there
All nice and warm
Ran off to meet his friend
Bags on their backs
Their smiling faces
Vanished around the bend
Crying out I awoke mother twisting my ear
She said be more like your brother
In my heart how I wished I was their only son
never compared to another
She loved him more
Or so I thought
He was the special one
Her pride her joy
Her golden boy
Her shade in life's harsh sun
Why couldn't it be me
Why couldn't it be me
Writing on lined pages a hundred times over
I'll remember to go to school
The aching of my hand bringing tears to my eyes
Promised never to play the fool
How could I know
As I sat here
He in the assembly hall
Was unaware the clock struck ten
And guns came over the wall
Why couldn't it be me
Why couldn't it be me
The poem first appeared
in Hindustan Times
Published in The Express Tribune, December 30th, 2014.
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