Pramod Lad

Lined
   (Remembering Arthur Koestler’sDarkness at noon)

We knew something was up. All the by-lines
Were missing. New sewage projects as headlines?
Careful news nested in cautious outline,
Some erased print. Learned to read between the lines.
Then the newspaper disappeared. The breadlines
Grew longer. Friends who said they would drop us a line 
Flew off. The guards knew the tricks. Never declined 
A bribe but blurted words out of line
Invited trouble, so closely were we aligned 
With befriending spies. Then came the picket line.
They knew they were flaunting the party line.
They were rounded up. Made to stand in line.
Rat-a-tat. We watched, as they fell, our line
Of vision blurred. A tear drop's scarring line.

Pramod Lad was born in India and has a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Cornell University.  He was a scientist at the National Institutes of Health. His poems have been accepted in wilderness house, The Examined Life Journal, Right hand pointing, Omentum, Eclectica magazine, The Innisfree poetry journal, The Umbrella Factory, Pulsebeat Poetry Journal, Pennine Platform, Litbreak Magazine, Amethyst Review, Soul Forte, Creations Magazine, Austur Literary magazine, Closed Eye Open, Waxing and Waning, neologism, and verse virtual.