Reselience

Life happens, not like it is expected to,
It serves bloody blows for me and you!
The next turn would have been
The dream come true -
But the twists we encounter
Detours to challenges anew.
Thorns sink in the skin -
Roses we desire!
Was that a happy grin
Set to fire?
Seek to smile, joyly dance-
Circumstances snatch the chance.
Dreams knock down
Like domino blocks.
The doors to bliss
Appear with locks -
But wait a blink,
Be positive when you think,
As clouds they say, have silver linings!
Poke through hurdles
Armed with smiles-
Then journey unfolds
Of joyful miles.
Those hits you endure
Of  bricks and stones-
They break the bones,
But hold in the moans!
Gather them together,
Prepare your ground,
Build your abode
In a strong rebound!
Rope in the guts,
Life does get hard -
To meet with those cares,
Hardy soul prepares - 
And sprouts fresh foliage
Of grit and dares!


(Inspired by the click above by a dear friend)

Pain

If  the droplets could be heaped,
They would reach the skies
And puddle back in under the eyelids.
Flooding the pining insides!
If  feelings could be stacked
They would topple down in a mess -
Call it grief, call it gloom
Call it a bud, nipped in bloom!
Homeless dreams haunt the broken heart.
An orphaned hope mocks back,
Making rude faces.
Vessels we are..
Carrying  loads, being used.
Caught in a mirage..
Chasing an illusion.
Life goes on yet,
Wrapped up in lies
The ones we tell, the ones we hear
What's the purpose of crumpled hearts?
Of ripped apart feelings?
Could they heal? Could they unbreak?
Life goes on yet,
Wrapped in lies..
In the lies we pitifully live!

(picture - light sifting through the darkness of  my room)

Joy ride.

I spent a sizable amout of my life in an automobile, both behind the steering and in the passenger seat. The flow and order on a US highway baffled me to no end..the high speed cars zooming past, and the ones that changed lines did so seamlessly, as though they are weaving a tapestry of vehicles in perfect design. Looking at the traffic through my tinted window seemed near meditative. It had a soothing quality to it that lulled me into peace. Now take that scene and put it next to the roads of Hyderabad and you get  the perfect yin and yang. If there is a perfect visual antonym for order, it has to be the roads and the traffic here. A concoction of pedestrians, metro rail workers, hawkers at the signal posts, beggars, random stray animals, two wheelers, three wheelers, four wheelers, eight wheelers - you get the idea! I made it a point these days to put my camera away while soaking in the details of the road - or  else, I'd have had pictures of six passengers on a motorbike, twenty in a pick up truck with odds and ends like bundles of hay, Share autos busting at seams with people stuffed in to double the capacity - but somehow, they all seem to safely make it to their destinations. It is hard to spot people riding with helmets and toddlers sit on the back seat of bikes holding while wrapping their tiny arms to their guardians' waists.

The perfect accent to this bedlam is the sea of faces that stream through. No two faces dress, look or emote alike. The skins seem transperant with minimal decorations - mostly Bindis in random shapes and the occasional streak of vermilion in the parting of the hair in lieu of a wedding band. I recollect the overcrowd of makeup counters in our departmental stores back home and wonder what Indian women do differently to sport the clear complexions and natural beauties. Now, it is not like I want to brand myself as a bonafide foreigner, but the simple fact that I'd been away for a while now and life had drastically changed with special reference to the traffic on roads and perhaps my own angles of looking at them changed too :)

The most interesting part is the hoardings I spot. The grammar Nazi in me has a loud chuckle and the amateur shutterbugger gasps at almost every other sight. I shall make it a point to designate one of my upcoming trips to clicking just to add the visuals to my descriptions. I spotted everything from Testy Food join, Multi cushion restaurants and other linguistic marvels that escape my mind at the moment. Ironies of life clutter the road, almost unfolding a thesis of sorts into the human psyche.

The best part though, is the sheer variety - the adults, the kids, the workers, the drivers and their super unique signatures and expressions. It looks like a mini world, kind of like a Noah's arc where one of every kind is thrown in to survive - except the sheer number of specimens is overwhelming. Now it might be soothing to sit next to a window on the west bound US highway I 580 - but these lanes and roads, these twists and turns stimulate the body, mind and spirit in a way that only these paths can do - the priceless bonus is food for thought and numerous ponders that pulverize the infamous block :)

Picture - one of the many ironies, clicked with my smartphone! ;)

Flash back

Her thoughts, every once in a while

Linger in the past -

Those thick braids to the side of her ears!

Those acne punctuated cheeks - 

And the flutters of first love

In her thirteen year old being!

Early bloomer, alright -

What else would one expect?

For the depth her heart carried -

For those numerous feelings,

Layered on one another!

Beyond crushes and puppy loves -

Beyond infatuations and attractions

It was Love nonetheless -

A fact that unfolds much later

Down the years 

In her intense heart -

Surfacing in her large eyes!

A smile breaks on her pouty lips.

Heart skips a beat -

No matter the untold part,

No matter the unattained bliss.

Toss images of walking hand in hand -

Of cliched  'happily ever after' endings.

True love heaps on the remnants 

But the first ever beat of the heart

Pining for a longer look - 

Those stupid smiles

That scribbles in journals - 

written in the concretes of the soul!

Did she speak up? did she pursue?

Not so, nada! 

Life happens, joys sprinkle, tears drizzle

She gets her share 

Contentment peeks through 

A happy home!

Once in a while, the gawky teens

Rise in thoughts, gather in memories.

Buried alive, her first love

Beats inside those bygone years

For, experiences are sweet - Imaginations, a tad sweeter!

(Picture - The Sun, peeking through - somewhere in CA, clicked on my smart phone:) )

Wrath

Why do I feel it?

This tremor in the gut!

These seismic waves

That swallow things as whole..

Into the crevices of rage.

Why do I feed it?

Throwing thoughts of spite

For it to munch upon.

The fiery fangs

Licking me in..

Little do I know

It consumes me,

Leaving a rubble of remorse.

Do I plough gall, sow bane 

And foresee boons of love?

Do I spread grudge

And anticipate joy?

Stroke my ego,

Nurture my loathe

And expect bliss to unfold.

How naive, how lame!

Why do I rip this out..

This livid anger

Enraged in emotion.

What do I seek? What do I sustain?