My old parents

My old parents -
They are like children.

They believe that I find happiness
in early mornings

and their changeless suns.

They believe that I find happiness
in the books that I read,
the writers of which themselves probably never knew happiness.

They believe that I am happy when I fall in love,
when I find pleasure in women I don't love,
when I drink a glass of gin.

They believe that I am happy about future,
about hope, about life, about the taste of mangoes.

It seems that they believe that I have somehow learned to be happy;
I am sure they cannot remember teaching it to me.

I laugh and pretend a lot
though I don’t have to take much pain

because to deceive one’s parents is very easy
for they are very credulous -
like children.

But then, maybe they are right,
maybe while I write these lines and while I feign happiness I am happy

and maybe this is the happiest I can ever be.