1
Once
people had trust in their decent looks and dress
With tidy habits and
clean-shaven cheeks;
People shuddered at
disorderly things immense
They chose colors white,
cool blue, and sober green
Their language sounded
with due courteous grace
Not meant to hurt
feelings in rude, rough ways;
Everyone tried to be a
gentle man or woman;
Reckless, shabby ways of
style they did shun.
2
All
of a sudden, we see a sudden sea-change
Unkempt long -grown hair
is the modern trend
Skin-tight shirts with
shredded jeans strange
Dark flashy tinted shirts
printed with bold slogans blend
To show off their bold,
defiant don’t-care attitude;
Their language is rough
mixed with curse-words crude
Watching movies with sex and crime, their pastime
Addicted to mobiles, they
waste their valuable time.
3
Old
tradition and conventions they mock
They feel ultra-modern
and advanced in their mind-set;
And spurn the past as
outdated with frivolous talk;
Lacking discretion, they
are trapped by the internet
Addicting themselves to
drugs, drinks and smoke
Stuffing their bellies
with junk food and Coke;
Too reckless in driving
to show off their strength
They cause loss of lives
and risk their own health.
4
Too
much freedom and made-easy methods make
Them lazy ever used to
digital services swift
Which blunt their
inherent life-skills and break
Personal creative
thinking and cause a rift
Between their mind and
heart-a hiatus vast;
The interplay of feelings
and expression they have lost.
In their looks, a sense
of insecurity is seen
They have no time to
ponder what true values mean.
5
Tempted
by outward beauty they easily fall
Into the trap of
infatuation which they mistake
For genuine love and
stray from all
Of their duties and put
their future at stake
They burn their purse and
their golden years lay waste
They commit themselves
without forethought in haste;
Who accepts a youngster
without a profession high
Without high
qualifications who will rely?
6
His
hasty love at last leads him to despair
Or to rash acts of
violence and suicide;
Causing loss to parents,
unjust and unfair;
A hasty surrender to
tempting desires
Surely results in ruining
others and self too;
Steadfast love needs a
good job and mutual trust true;
Think wisely without rash
irresponsible acts
Love will not yield to brutal and shameful acts.
7
Beware
of adverse effects of media, Oh Youth!
Don’t trust whatever it
says or shows;
Don’t think they show
real facts and truth
Don’t be tempted by feats
of virtual heroes;
In real life they are not
valid, you see
Live not in the unreal
world of fantasy.
Use your own wits and
sift fiction from the facts
None supports in real life such unreasonable acts.
8
Don’t
get tempted by advertisements false;
On promises of the tinsel
world don’t depend;
Overspending will not
build up your image but loss
Don’t get cheated by bill
boards and modern trends;
Wasting food and water
your rash nature reveals
Think how many suffer
just for one square meal?
Can you re-create
Nature’s gifts you waste
Show concern for the future and act not in haste.
9
Are
we going back to ancient age when man dwelt
In caves covering with leaves
his body bare?
Exposing body is the
modern mind-set
Cave-men used stones and
spears to scare
The wild beasts, and with
rivals to fight
Not much difference; the
modern with same spite
Throws drones and
missiles with supersonic speed
With same brutal instinct
and destructive greed.
10 Care for future and concern for Nature show
Use your power for good and not to cause
distress
Exploiting natural sources too much will
throw
The whole creation into chaos beyond our
guess
Before catastrophe strikes take sufficient
care
Of plants, birds and beasts and lakes;
beware
Of pollution, once lost, you can’t create or retrieve
What loss you did; in brief live and let
live.
&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&
4th April 2026 Somaseshu Gutala
