My Metal Steed by Abhishek Raol

My Metal Steed by Abhishek Raol

We considered ourselves cowboys on bikes

Most of my childhood was spent on that frame

I cared for it like my very own steed

I clearly remember picking it out

From the huge stable called G.I. Joes

I was young, it was an easy choice

Just go with the one that looked coolest

It smelled so clean, so fresh without a scratch

The brand was diamondback just like the snake

I think that’s why I picked it, I loved snakes

Especially on hot summer days when

We were letting our mighty steeds take rest

We would transform from cowboys to hunters

Pretending our backyard was a jungle

Like hawks, fearlessly capturing the snakes

Prisoning them in Nike shoe boxes

Trying desperately to make them our pets

However our attention spans were short

So back to mounting our metal horses

Strapping on our hard plastic cowboy hats

And we all looked at and thought the same thing

The empty long stretch of road that we loved

Right in front of us, challenging us forth

We lined up and dropped to the lowest gear

All of a sudden we were in Nascar

A 3, 2, 1 GO! Echoed down the road

The echo followed by the clanking of

Gears, churning of chains, swishing of pedals

Our grunts of determinations grew loud

We all needed to be the best cowboy