Circles

Here I am.
Now,
Before you.
I was lost.
Guilty;
Just a while ago
In reality.
Now,
I return
To absolve
Myself clean;
To this virtual space.
Where
We often meet.
Oh! What pretense
This is?
Where a conversation
Means no contact.
There’s a connect
With a curtain
In between.
Emotions are mere
Brackets, colons
Slashes, hash
Hyphens and other
Punctuations.
When I
Have a lot to say;
With abbreviations
And acronyms,
I say it least.
When I need to silence
I :) or ;)
Leaving your imagination
To assume anything.
Where my thumb
Plays the tongue.
And your eyes
Act as ears.
Oh! What pretense
this is?
:-) :-( :-/ :-# :-|
Hope you understand
What I mean?
If not
I’m confused.
I guess
We are
Just going in circles,
Currently.
Here I am.
Now,
Before you.
I was lost.
Guilty;
Just a while ago
In reality.

All it takes...

From a cry to a squeal,
And some babble in the meantime;
Before you prattle with all the learnt words.
It takes a lot of practice to sound wise.

From scanty to crew cuts,
Gelled hairdos to going bald
Or turning grey when old,
It takes experience to groom your crown.

From being christened with just another name
To having it etched on a business card.
And moving onto a grave as an epitaph,
It takes a lifetime, be it a few years or decades.

From a fleeting glance to a constant gaze
And then an observant look;
Just before that hopeless fall,
It takes more than that first glimpse.

From being just another page
To turning into a phase,
And become a part of someone’s life,
All it takes is more than love.

? =

Isn’t it strange how you try to frame a story
Of things you’ve come across?
Of things lived through and gone past.
Those that you remember
When you’re all by yourself.
You borrow them from your past
And hard sell it with waivers
Luring your future to buy them again.
Fix a beginning and an end.
Make people in your life
Play characters and pivotal roles.
Of course, you’re in the lead
While the world, around you, revolves.
Replay classics in the background.
Add a twist to that tale,
And a tinge of humor or tragedy.
Or induce an anti-climax or
A happily-ever-after.
Bring worlds together,
That lay eons away.
Well, now you seem
To be well prepared;
To push the rewind button
Way before I pull down the curtains.
Could you please take a deep breath
And give me a count to ten?
Now that you’re back, simply read on…
Before you know it has begun
And long gone.
You’re a part of it
Whether you like it or don’t.
Memories make great stories.
Some, you tell to yourself
Over and over again to feel good.
And some you try never to return to.
You either pause or skip them
Press fast forward
Till you arrive at a better scene.
But this is something I have always
Pondered upon.
This is for you,
An open ended question.
Do memories contain life
Or is it the other way around?

stubbed

An old friend returned
And I burnt my lips.
After a long hiatus of fresh air
I have taken a break.
Hopefully, she is here
For a short stay.
An erstwhile companion
In my heydays.
She would reduce to ashes
Just to see me rise.
While we killed time
She played my accomplice.
Tempted me for another tryst
Whenever I would want to quit.
At every rendezvous
I would assure myself
This would be my last.
But the affair, usually, lasted
Much beyond that.
Finally, one New Year’s Eve
We decided to part.
I gave up on her
And said to myself,
This would be the last.
I guess now,
There has been a relapse.
She’s back now
To turn me into a foe.
And this time, like always,
I’m sure it would last.

To Benji Mama - A Tribute

What do I say and what do I skip?
About this mighty giant
Who was approximately five feet.
He had a distinct sense of humor
And a versatile character.
He would race against the wind
On his mean lil Vespa scooter.
He was an avid reader;
With his constant gifts
He turned me too into a booklover.
A musician and a photographer by passion,
My very first Guitar Instructor.
And one of the inspirations
For me to become a lensman.
An all-time movie buff and critic
Mostly, Biblical, historical
And then the Western, Cowboy classics;
With a flair for good music,
He introduced us to all the greatest hits.
A Gadget Guru, a Know-it-all.
Our family’s very own Santa Claus
Who traded gifts for our smiles
And not any milk and cookies.
Every December he ushered the Season’s greetings
Along with his fellow carolers and his six strings.
He also played in harmony
To those who sought the eternal sleep.
He was a warrior to his last breath.
He fought persistently without ever losing hope.
What do I say and what do I skip?
About this mighty giant
Over whose shoulders we stood
And saw the world when we were kids.


Without you, our dearest, Benji Mama;
No Christmas would ever be the same.

Lunatic Eclipse

Under the twilight, on a quest I wander.
At the shallow end, I stand,
Yet to slip and drown in deep slumber.

Lost count of sheep
And they seem to have lost their flock;
While I’m trying hard to reclaim my mislaid sleep.

In a frail attempt to leap
Across the barbed fence; Caught
In the wilderness of insomnia they bleat.

Darkness has seeded chaos,
And made every thought
Scuttle opting varied paths;

Like mortals of Babel’s tower
They scamper, unawares, they seek solace,
While a shadow follows their every step.

I pray, I fall asleep
The moment I let the lids down.
For I cannot resort to the age-old tradition, till morn.

The fiend lurks the plain tonight,
Preying upon the flock till first light.
The Wolf, a nightmare, in a sheep’s clothing.

P.T.O.

Don’t raise a tombstone over my head;
Let there be no epitaph that bears my name.
Bid your final goodbye with three fists full of soil;
Just bury my remains in a secluded place.
Preferably, under a sprawling banyan’s shade.

Burn me till I’m grey.
Don’t confine my remains in an urn of porcelain.
Send me off into the unseen. See me off as I disappear.
Blow me away into the winds.
Let me know how it is to be a zephyr.

I don’t wish to be a resident,
Don’t you bear me in your mind;
Of a chronicle that’s neither fact nor fiction.
From wine to vinegar, try what ever you may;
Let me pass as a cataclysmic, ephemeral phase.