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Of Winter born...

I was merely seven that day,
when father had passed away,
alone and lifeless lay he
mirroring the stoic surroundings
of a land strangled by the cold winter

It would be hours before
the four shoulders rise glum
to take their brother upon them
for his time hath come

It was left to me to weild axe
as father had taught
and keep my mother and sisters warm
till mourners arrived to soothe the trouble fraught

Dark and foreboding stood the woods,
black as the Death whom I now know,
cold and stifling life,
covered by the heartless snow

It called to me, did the forest, and warned me to stay clear
its branches reaching skywards to trap the Moon
its mountains spreading coal blindness for miles
its hooting owl and laughing hyena rejoicing at my fear

Those thirty steps beat faster my heart
shuddered my breath and shivered my hand
yet still I walked into the winter's lair
and chopped till it was firewood, till a boy became a man

I turned once when out and stared back in
and the dark woods stared back,
with fear shaking its branches thin,
an act of defiance that the World could see
now caused winter to be afraid of me

Some said, a boy for whom the dark brought tears
for once stood up to face his fears,
yet all I would say is, Not fear but destiny rather,
it made me face winter, for one must avenge his father

...

Away from the verses of wild rambles,

Sketching portraits, for muse, inner peace,

We stare with pride at what we unachieved,

Lying uninspired on the mantelpiece.

Rippled Moon...

On a bed of water, softly watch it sneak,
across the plane of droplets clutched as one,
betrayed by the gaps in sails, it peeks,
much after the blue has swallowed the sun

From edge of Sea, which we Horizon claim,
a saline Pied Piper calling out our name,
oft we are charmed to starve well-fed domicile,
wade into water in search of glorious futile

Alas! Upon the fall of a pebble mischievous,
slithering across waves imperious,
we regain posture, for sea legs be crippled,
cursed be the one, who has the Moon suddenly rippled

A Lovers Return...

Sometimes, my love is a gentle wish,
On soft summer night she sits in grace,
And when I turn to her face,
She shifts her lips to mine and we kiss,
My love is gone, so I reminisce…

As showers touch the window pane,
we grasped and gasped rushing out insane,
insane in our dances, ignoring subtle nuances,
we spent half the days in the showers,
and nights under covers till late hours,
My lover still truant, am salvaging from the ruins…

On nights of winter by burning embers,
Dry lips now keenly remember,
Her remedy for the seasonal cold,
Was a moment of closeness so bold,
It brings misty eyes, through shiver recollect
My love is lost, so I resurrect…

Hope Springs, with its fresh flowers born
and fragrance of warm bread and corn,
as I pack my bags and place the keys,
of our once loved dwellings, a breeze
brings to me a familiar scent,
I turn to see my love, teary, at the door,
and rush to her scaterring bags upon the floor,
My love has returned, Was I ever spurned?

To rest a pair of painful feet...

On outstretched hands,
over coveted lands,
through killing fields 
and 
blades of grass,
which cut as you pass,
I have walked,unchallenged and free,
let me be.

Never a simple road I took,
never stopped to quench by the brook,
never rested for I was being tested,
turning around,I never did see...
let me be.

Now,you ask,to trace my path,
You refuse me a cleansing bath,
I am abhorred to see his Grace,
with such ignorance on his face...

My soul demands it be returned,
my body has already burnt,
give me another to seek,
but make me humble and weak,
so I may be twisted onto your path,
and face not again your wrath...

Or,
let me fail this ethereal test,
push me below for eternal rest,
for,
my feet have walked while you talked...

Slippery grip on reality...

Often I stare at the sky devoid of cloud,
Waiting for a drop that never falls,
Often I seek answers to questions,
Writing tirelessly on empty walls

I am a believer; I seek nightingales with clipped wings,
Stay with me, for only I can make a broken nightingale sing


Often the stars shoot across the blue,
I wish for I believe in a second try,
Often I paint with seven shades of white,
lending my credibility to your lie.

I am a dreamer; I seek prisoners with memory intense,
Stay with me, for only I believe in your innocence

Often tears escape when it is darkest,
I give in to fears before dawn,
Often the light that I seek for you,
are for a smile I pawned

I am a loser; I seek solace in your pain,
Stay with me, for only you can cover me when it rains.

Two Midnight Messiahs:The Sky and I

Oft the night sky sang sad songs,
crying inconsolably like a child...
for its day was marred again with
passing airships and flying birds,
yet none stopped to ask,
to smile and lift its mask,
to shephard it,to share its task.

I was only a child myself,
yet in seeing the sky's dark demeanor,
I bartered what little cents I had,
to bring rich gifts for the night,
bright showers of light,
and the loud screams of fireworks,
always coloured the sky's cheek,
shades of colour red,embarassed and meek.

We were friends, for when I was weak,
my hideout it too would seek,
and show streaks of neon in its cracks,
loud shouts calling me out,
sprayed me with waterfall,
played with a kid ignored by all.

Today I am a man,
Today the sky is grey old,
I bring with the same enthusiasm
fireworks when the sky gasps in spasm,
but he is slowed with signs of age,
and I am left rain-less and caged
with pain causing rage,uncontrolled.

Maybe, It was impish illumination,
a child with happy hallucination,
and the Sky was never my friend,
but I still shower on it,..sparkles,
hoping it answers in its booming voice,
for given a choice…

I would rather, on night made heavy with rumination,
Be a dreamer enchanted by fertile imagination.

Immortalized by Death

It was night without moon,
stealth and fear,impatient and undead,
with knives and torches,men sought 
the path of the newly wed.

I watched her descend in grace
from her window into his embrace,
and led them through forgotten alleys,
into God built hidden valleys.

A carriage I lent,with two fine steed,
leading travel to secular lands,
while I,for fistful of lucre
sold a map to the vengeful hands.

The wheels were stopped,
fire - a vulgar death danced,
the town square heard the screams,
of the two who dared to dream.

Follower of the Crescent moon,
the flower born making the Cross,
were separated by death and elders rejoiced,
at the innocence that love now lost.

Yet many miles away,on a vessel at sea,
like a weeping cherubin beside me,
with his child inside,she still believed,
in his presence as she grieved.

She implored I stay,but I must return
to seek out those bloody hands,
to scream out in that redded land,
that the Gift of Love and its nurturing womb,
were alive and 'twas vengeance that was doomed.

I sacrifice my own love of Life to give,
Immortality to him,who burnt,to let Love live...

Best left unsaid

Touch not the scar lazing on the wound,
lest you should wake the world inside,
Damned be the healer-Time,its was found,
sought guidance from its maker,aside!

What of the promise,as years gather dust,
that pain,aged and frail,will be vanquished,they must!

Yet,like gathering storm thou befell,
bartering evenings of solitude for reminiscent hell.

I am afraid to introspect,
for am afraid of shivering to life,
further demons whom I slayed,
just to live in soliloquay,within this life I played.

Yet,freedom from mortality,cannot be bought cheap,
it must be traded for a sentence,a price so dear,
before we all leave for his ark we must keep
such quiet evenings and bid farewell to all our fears.

(Inspired by the poet Usha's 'Extant')

Mysterious Ways...

I thought,my Love is born of a stern heart,
it seeks no recognition,
it is fueled by my unseen desires,
through a wishful premonition,
till one fateful day many jealous eyes did see,
there you were, walking just for me.

Ankles held tight by the edge,
brief glimpses as you tip toe on the ledge,
Not the whiff of your delightful perfume,
nor the sight of your flowing auburn hair,
just walking down the street,
with a churidar wrapped around your feet.

Like sails shaped by wind at sea,
your calves curved below the knee,
with each step of your sensational gait,
you dangle a smile, an irresistible bait,
all eyes transfixed, and envy laced,
mortals battling sensuality they've never faced.

There is a murmur in the hall,
the performer has lost the crowd,
as I whisper into your ear,
your innocent giggle fills the air loud,
sheepishly you settle down with a smile,
you attract with glamour, you kill with guile.

Oft blown into my face your hair,
reminds me, its futile to stare,
for your face, your presence,
is my one devotion, my essence.
I smile, a lesson learnt, I look above,
My Lord, I say,is this the start of Love?

Happy Feet...

Beneath the starry night to sprinkle luck,
not for fame or greedy buck,
by the sound of the jingle on telly,
shaking hands and feet below my belly,
I danced for I was a happy pup...

She was too old for me,they say 65!
she offered me bread and jelly,kept me alive,
on days when it rained she let me in,
against the wishes of her kith and kin,
but on clear days,I danced for her grace...

Sometimes gathered an audience fair,
Pringles the Cat,and Bad Boy Pug with no hair,
they tried but they couldnt match,
(Ladies swooned,said I was a great catch!),
and I tap danced and twisted,unresisted!

On weekends it was a gala burlesque,
One handed Rodent Joe cut tickets behind a desk,
Cows,crows,wise owls,and a parrot Willy,
3 hawaiian squirrels with garlands silly,
all watched my Moonwalk and did small talk..

One day,my Lady love became sicky,
Dr.Dull asked her diet be made picky,
she still saved some eats for me from her plate,
I lied when I refused it,saying I was watching weight,
but even with nothing to eat,you coundnt stop my happy feet..


They took her away,in a van flashing lights,
I was crestfallen and stayed up many nights,
then Porky the Pig,heard people upstairs,
say she was breathing her last in intensive care,
and I was on the street,as fast I could go on my worried feet...

She was shocked to see me outside her window pane,
she was glad to see me dancing again,
to keep her smiling I did every dance,
to make her clap I took every chance,
It taught me,Life,no matter how insane,
one must dance even if the paws do pain...

A week later,in a deck chair,
I sipped lemonade,without a care,
with my Lady friend who took me in,
for the docs were convinced this puppy thin,
yelped and barked to make her fight,
when they believed 'twas her last night...

Soon the family gathered and played 'Grease',
and I could see friends peeking in through the trees,
I tried to act nonchalant,but not for long,
for as soon as Travolta started his song,
I was on the floor with the beat,
you couldn't stop my happy feet...

(With due apologies to Warner Bros n George Miller…)

A Question of Love...

Down your soft and coloured cheek
a tear drops,
placing a tender kiss,
can I return it to your eyes?
A question raised but dies
on your lips,
to answer your wish,
I shall place mine where they lie.

Dreams which I witnessed in forgotten arms,
reborn with your touch and furtive looks,
Love which I envied in watching others,
the kind Sade wrote of, in his private books.

Alone, We gather dust,
we all wall our temptations,
whisper to you I must,
you need to relive these sensations.

I am, some say, a fool to take,
our simple affair and an epic make,
yet Love cannot be measured,you may ask for more,
nor will it mirror the way you've loved before.

Asking you for a chance to be,
the Lover you dreamt of, Do you see him in me?

A Silent whisper...

Words fail to express or profess,
no lie to live but learning to confess,
When I dream at night 
witnessed by lesser light,
my eyes undress...
what my arms yearn to caress

Look into my eyes and you will see,
shadows and silhouettes of you and me,
I have not dreamt,I created reality,
the Love I know,lends time immortality.

A kiss to shut your eyes,
for when they awaken they'll see,
your life lived in search of answers,
when all you needed was me.

A whisper of love by your ear,
of promises made to last,
words you longed to hear,
slaying demons of our turbulent past.

Staring eyes wide at my goddess slender,
at this chosen hour of bliss,
leaning in to solemnize a moment tender,
breaking the silence with the sound of a kiss

Blindness...

She stood by the glass window,
proud to see rain she caused,
laughed at the audacity
of making such a wish,
at the life of a woman paused

She needed to feel rain,
she felt warmth in its cold grasp,
unlike the thrusts of pain,
of life and a helpless past

Yet she never touched the outpouring today,
just knowing it is around her,
she felt what she sought had found her,
by the window,watching the drips,
she could not help but wet her lips,
tasting her fears,
wasting her tears...

How many times will a fool mistake
tears for fulfilled wishes of a shower?
How many times will her mind partake
in games of pity at her weakest hour?

Reflections caught in glass windows
can distort facts and unseen acts maybe,
but to ignore the reality beyond the window?
Its blindness to choose what we see

The Way We Are...

There is a girl in my head,
she exists but I have chained
her frame and shadow to keep her hidden,
within my conscious,she has never complained

I sit by her when it is day,
yet she lives and loves on another land,
unknown to her my fingers stroke her hair,
unseen the way I hold her hand

She walks home at day's end,
feeling kissed by a gentle breeze,
it is I who imagined her in my sylvan retreat,
where wind chimes shudder amidst whispering trees

It is night and I am breathless,
my Lover lies naked still,
she dreams of me,her unseen fate,
I dream to hold her till
the waking morn..when new fantasies are born

Love has never come to stay,
it has lingered often,changing face,
I prefer to imagine than to be your love,
I need for once a longer embrace

To Her On The Eve...

When the night grows exceeding calm,
amidst the chill and dreams unchecked,
I sit by you whispering,merging palms,
burying my face into the nape of your neck

Each kiss a solitaire,
so gentle on your breathless skin I place
watching with hunger your body glare,
cut smooth by my lip's embrace

A closeness that begs compare,
ray of sunlight on a chair...
dewdrop on a leaf bare...

Demystify for me this thirst..
it awakens in me a parched,sun baked land..
without drops of love to quench its lust..
feeding on lifeless brittle sand..

I crave your acceptance to prove I live,
counting fears when you depart..
for without you beside,this life I give,
futile to part with breath or beat of Heart

Come,for I have left serendipity behind,
I seek by design not chance or fate line..
rescue me from being alone undefined..
to prove that Love is unruly yet truly divine

Where there is real Love...
who can question the creation of Life...
as we bow to our maker from cradle to tomb,
we bow to the feminine,we pray to the womb

A Love So Ordinary

There was a time,
when the rare morning brought cheer,
living in the shadows I learnt,
to avoid the Sun for it burned
my face devoid of feeling,so cold in fear

There were days,
when eyes wide,I forever slept,
not by choice but unforced loneliness,
with me lay Fate undressed,
stripped of Fortune,it too wept

You brought with you,Dawn,
I was delivered,I was reborn.

These are the days,
Of unquestioned smiles that blossom on my face,
I blend magic,
You say,
yet I was devoid of subtlety and finery,
Is this Love being an educator of the ordinary?

These are the days,
when sleep loses track of me,lost in time,
your face a spotless moon,eclipsed by mine,
arresting the moments of this hourless bliss
with sounds of our tireless kiss

Pardonned Prodigal...

Once I left the valley of Faith,
new born confidence gripped my hand,
not His footprints just my soul
marking tracks in the proverbial sand

I learnt to sculp common idols,
give them life and pray as virtuous - as vile,
I yearned for fruit from a once forbidden garden,
of which I was now master,she lay enticing,servile

Where is wisdom in failure?
How often does a sinner starve?
Which God hands out loaf and fish?
How Fool-Pious we are - to have the image carved

Give me the wound that gives me equal pleasure..
a life spent escaping shadows of stolen treasures..

Give me death that the Evil may truly measure
and say "here lies a man who stole by day,
by night faithful to only his leisure"

Yet, when I stood at the Edge of Insanity,
I realized, man was enslaven to Humanity,
Turned...to return, and move the boulder from His tomb,
Spurned...the sheet of the two headed willing womb

I stand now no more opposing the call..
of the Crescent Moon...
of the Shouldered Cross..
of the Silent Om...
of the Circled Star...

"And what do You seek in return, Child?"
"Heaven?"

"No, Father..
for No Heaven floats above this Earth...
Heaven met me upon my Birth"