I saved them!

It has been two years

Since the world lost its smile

Behind the shield.

Many an ‘infectious’ smile has perished

Crashing against the wall

That claims to protect us.

So these days I save my smiles –

My rare, precious smiles.

Instead, I just shrink my eyes at them.

My foggy brain frowns

At my absurd, inapt gesture.

But man, look at all my savings!

My Files

Thus I was born with
those few basic programmes.

As voices and visuals poured in
I felt I got access to more.

Later I had my own words
Making me edit, delete,
Update and add more.

More faces, words, deeds
Knowledge, experiences –
The evolving continued.

Then the teenage rebellion!

The ordeals of life
Overhauled them often.

At times they were futile
Making me look pathetic.

Now here I am today,
digging into the enormous,
tangled pile of life files
searching frantically for
my disaster management docs!

‘Alarm’ing!

I hate him –
the rigid precisionist
who axed the climax
of my thriller dream.

I tried feigning sleep
but the unkindest cut
was too loud, fatal,
leaving me ‘clueless’!

Now who will tell me
what happened to me
after I came out of
the palace-cum-barn-cum-mountain?

 

 

 

 

Tell me your secrets

I could hear Wind roaring
In languages unknown to me.

It was lonely –
Lonely as the cold desert!

Sometimes loud and scary
At times silent and creepy.

I could feel
His dry tears of loss.

I was weather-beaten,
And my brain – tired!

I tried and tried
Oh, but Wind
Never let me
Know his secrets!

SOS

(STORIES FROM THE SCHOOL – II)

Girl 1

She couldn’t answer –
Today too!

Meet me later.

What is the problem, dear?

I’m sc..a..r..ed..

Hmm… no more questions.
Let me know when you are ready.

Girl 2

She was late again-
Third day in a row.

Why?
No reply – as usual.

Her shabby uniform,
Skinny frame,
Terrified looks
Were no good signs.
Time to poke my nose.

Contaminated

In those moments of peace
There was nothing to stir
the tranquility of her mind.

Bored by the stillness and monotony
the mind had curled up somewhere.

Then the message beep!
Surprisingly she decided to check.
OMG! How come?!
Did he…? How can he…?

The mind woke up
Contaminated!

She could feel
the pressure build up,
the breathing quicken
the stomach cramp.

She read it again, to confirm
before the explosion.

Only to realize – her prejudices
had pulled a prank on her.

Cruel revenge!

 

 

 

To those who build walls

I have never seen
the fluffy snow,
the meandering rivers,
the undulating deserts,
the towering mountains,
the dark depths of the oceans,
the carnival of northern lights.

In short,
I haven’t yet
stepped out of my pond.

Some day I may.

But the walls they build –
they worry me.

What if, when I’m ready
the walls are way too high?

Remember,
I have never seen them.

Crossroads

 

At this point

I start wondering –

What have I done?

Have I been doing it right?

Is there an undo option?

Can I start all over again?

Where are the roads?

Through the gloom I grope around.

They say there is light at the end

But for me seeing is believing.

I am waiting for my albatross.

Or have I already killed it?

Am I being plagued by its spirit?

Yearning

Given up grumbling
And taken up yearning.
Yearning for the impossible.
Wait a minute – impossible?

My body is weighing me down.
The weight loss didn’t help,
The dropping BMI doesn’t satisfy.
I now relate better to the anorexic.
Not just a size zero,
but only zero weight would gratify.

The vast universe is calling
But with this demanding body –
a liability – how far can I go?
I don’t care about eating,
cleaning, rest – I’ve no time!

My soul, too enormous,
has been squeezed into this fragile form
Where he chokes, frantically knocks,
And moans in distress.

I beg him to wait
till I’m done with my chores.
Till tomorrow? Next year?
Till my kids have grown up?
I don’t know!
But he is in misery, he signals.
Every earthly moment kills.

The universe is calling!

I dream of blending in with it
Feeling its infinity with each atom.
Atom? Or just energy?

Whatever!

The universe keeps calling,
My soul is desperate
Awaiting deliverance!

Grumbler

Boredom gnaws,
but I won’t give up.

Determined,
I set out
on this journey –
from room to room.
This room, that room,
the other room – the end.

Still resolved.
Reading, cooking,
Cleaning, writing,
Creating – Repeat.

Yoga!
Yoga for relaxation,
Yoga for flat belly,
Power yoga –
Two sessions a day!

YouTube! Veganism,
minimalism, feminism…
Blogs, hmmm…
Facebook, ugh!

I open the windows
only to close it –
struck by the desert summer.

How long
shall I hang on?!