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The Day Labourer

from The Isle of Plagues by Champion Things

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about

Written after watching a documentary on Day Labourers in India.

lyrics

The Day Labourer

Standing astride the spike
She clasps the shaft
Just as her father taught her
Hurtles the weight upwards
Allowing the head
To hover over her momentarily

She breathes deeply
Then instigates
the rapid descent
Her arms insisting
that the hammer maintains
a central arc and plane

And as she hits the target
The crusty overlay splits
opening the way
For the mechanical digger
To ply its trade
in the softer elements underneath

She knows that this technique
Will allow her enough sway
With the gangmasters and bondsmen
Who will get her back tomorrow
Because physically she will be less drained
Than those who apply the windmill method

Her father was a day labourer
As was his father
Her mother also
Some worked in the brick kilns
Where they were
Bonded to the employer

Others and she is one of them
Roam the pick-up points
Hoping to be selected
For the building sites
Where the work is heavy
But the pay is guaranteed

When she returns home
She can finance flour
For flatbread,
Rice and cauliflower
Feed her children
Ensuring even a small cash reserve

She hopes this will allow her family
To survive Modi’s lockdown
She is thinking that in the future
She might be able to access
Some level of education
For the children

She says she is building a bridge
Between life as it is now
And a future where the necessity
For hard labour is lessened
This was before her husband, her brother
and their families arrived from the long walk
needing her help

credits

from The Isle of Plagues, released November 1, 2020
Words and Vocal - Gordon Hewitt
Music/Sound - Vic Bronzini Fulton

license

all rights reserved

tags

about

Champion Things image

Champion Things Belfast, UK

Champion Things is a group based around Gordon Hewitt (guitar, lyrics and vocals) and Wallace Gibson (Electronic and Acoustic Saxophone) creating groove based music, overlain with songs, spoken word, and chants. Hewitt and Gibson are accompanied by a floating line-up of musicians. The group's home is Belfast, Northern Ireland. ... more

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