Sunday, December 30, 2018

journey

i'd like to go 
on a nice long train ride
through the network of your brain 

navigate through 
criss-crossed thoughts
discover secrets,
surprises and grey areas

let me roar through
steep mountains, dark tunnels 
and fertile fields of red and gold 

and ease up 
at dimly-lit abandoned stations 
nobody else cares to stop at 

look, do you see 
that cat on the platform? 
curious eyes watch 
from underneath the magazine-cart 

the door's open, 
let me stand here
and watch the sky form 
long streaks of motion blur

slow down, you say 
and patterns start to emerge
as the engine pulls into a new place

in anticipation 
of conversations over
steaming hot cups of chai 

and the promise
of exploring
uncharted waters 

the signal reflects
the fiery setting sun
it's time to get off here.

Wednesday, September 12, 2018

privilege

a shiny new car
a new shirt from the mall 
see, want, buy -- things we don't need 
but would like to have

the lightness of easy spending 
the buoyancy of affordability 

does it really make up 
for the guilt of privilege
that rests heavy
unbudging

Thursday, September 06, 2018

art


a poetic verse
drowning in the sound 
of a crowd talking among themselves

an elaborate illustration 
lost on the walls
of a dirty, stinking subway

a beautiful song
trying to make its presence felt
among train announcements

a grey photograph
subdued by the loud
angry neon billboard 

a profound comic
dying in the noise of 
Instagram feeds

a rich voice
singing to the stars
in the middle of the desert

extraordinary works
undiscovered stories 
overshadowed by busy daily lives 

why bother at all 
to create a piece of art 
what is it worth? 

Thursday, June 21, 2018

revival

delicate little
herb plant
you died overnight

leaves droop
and hang over 
the side of the pot

i add some water
in the hope that maybe
tomorrow you will revive yourself

and in the morning,
i find a miracle
replenished again, you're doing fine

if only this worked
for everyone.  

Monday, May 21, 2018

decisions

perhaps there are no right
and wrong decisions
perhaps there is only
a slot of time 

Monday, April 30, 2018

ache


love is sustaining
love is fulfilling
loving is easy, they say
love is warmth and comfort
she cradles you as you sleep 

but love
which truly transforms you 

is love
which is a 
special kind of ache. 

Friday, April 13, 2018

will


a little leaf
peeking out
from the crack in the ground

wet, bent over
by the merciless rain 
a struggle
to survive 
bearing the weight 
of heavy, shiny droplets 

there's so much fight
left in it yet 

Sunday, April 08, 2018

i went for a walk today


i went for a walk today
before sunrise

i soaked in the slow spread 
of the golden-red
across the sky
like the first wash 
of a painting 

the lake gently nudged
its bank-dwellers awake

a flock of ducks 
took off one by one
skyward, in formation 

a black and white magpie
opened its wings, revealing  
a shimmery, deep blue 

a swan sailed silently
across the grey lake 
rippling the reflections 

its chick, hesitating at first
behind the tall fronds
stepped forwards

and plop, landed in the waters
following its mother
creating ripple inside ripple 

in a mesmerizing pattern 
which gradually subsided into 
a calm blue-grey

it was like  
like nothing ever happened 

until a goose, honking loudly
stepped into the water 
and splashed about wildly

another, and then another
joined in, and they raised their voices
in a deafening chorus 

a cousin flying overhead 
called out to them
one answered, the others followed

and suddenly they were all gone, 
just like that, and the lake's waters 
closed in again 

i went for a walk today 
and it reinforced what i've always suspected
that life is a poem
life is a song. 

Sunday, February 25, 2018

Rains

allow me 
to drink in 
your very being

through you
i taste the monsoons,
the wet earth, 
life-giving. 

Tuesday, February 06, 2018

swaddled in snow
a world so white
a transformation so dramatic
overnight
it didn't make a sound 

Monday, February 05, 2018

wait

throw things around
raise your voice 
shout and scream

isn't that what
we all want to do 
from time to time

hold back 
for a moment or two
and it will pass

a small victory
every time.