locked in the closet

I pondered over the decree
for the angel to bring gold tidings
shepherds watched over that silence
I endured it in joyless peace
my heart was like a manger
I was afraid to let it go
but in my haste
I locked it in the closet
what of it, one might ask?
festive days,
do those help in renewal?
I say, no way.
those come and go

"I am left with vacuum of thoughts"

citizen of dreamland

I circled the purple
a game I played
as luck would have it
I had no trouble winning
my dream allow me to be flexible
I become a citizen of one the states of dreamland
far beyond earth, earth year
I don't lag behind
as I now fly wingless
no friction to curtail me

"happenstance?"

hidden by shadows

I stand here
half in shadows
my glasses hiding my eyes
the tears stream down
your shadow on my jacket
provides a kind of security blanket
I look so aloof
the boards behind enhance that
do you think
standing at the crossroads
is an easy task?
fetch that inkpot
let me pen my last note
let me raise it for your health

"my watch stopped long time ago"

elemental pulsations

pulsations of the elements
grip the spasm
the boat is an enigma
I feel weightless in sand
tumbling in a rare medium
the spacious vastness 
pulls me in rapid succession
I am released into a misty glass
shedding my clothes, I bared my soul too
I watch the boat take away my hubris

"wipe the mist and look at the sky,
light is never far away"

diasporic flavor

there was so much whispering
in the mist of that vast gathering

a lonely garden chair, under that oak
had so many people flock there

a membrane of fleeting nostalgia
so heavy that I needed a crane

such aura of colors
mixed with diasporic flavor

a lone voice from the past
created noise silently

I stretched a limb or two
you took a dim view

"when ennui sets in,
why don't I get all dewy?"

fulcrum of my thoughts

anger spinning out of control
I lash out at you
my face so ruddy
your smug smile incenses me

I find that untidy envelope
gullible words rustle in my ear
I shudder in a subliminal way
but sunshine mellows me

you, the fulcrum of my thoughts,
make anger rush out.
come, let me hold you close,
let me exist in a fool's paradise.

weathered

it toppled over-
I placed it against the wall
that redness enhanced by drabness
which hides a story or two
I investigate for clues

"who hid you away from me?"

moon sways

the moon sings to the stars
it is sight to behold
the stars swaying to melody
celestial dance of eternal love
soaks into my pores
moon is all alone
yet never lonely
spiritual love of the sun
gives it a glow, a light
which does not belong to it
yet sun is seeking the moon
giving its own light
they get across to each other
through the darkness
dispelling it for us
the day in the month sun sulks
the moon hides
yet the stars dance in the euphoria

"my vote goes for you
who looks at the moon and thinks of me.
hopefully"

oblivion

drowned in spark,
oblivious of silence;
trapped in smolder
of mindless fire
sky rains diamonds

which fleetingly show their face
and fly away to another planet

metamorphosis

“honestly . . .”

beginning of many
warped sentences:

partial reality that coat
enunciations

so when we look
into his flat words,

we try to see something
multi-dimensional
in the eyes of the speaker,
to give us some inkling
about his ever-changing stance…..

perhaps our efforts
are wasted;

yet we have to do it
for our own insight
into his twisted mind,

to get an inkling
of lurking evil

"why am I thinking of that two faced individual?"

surface

in the safety of the forest
I find the strength from bees
who balance out nature
eloquent in their silence
rapidly cleaning dew from the flowers
they make a point
in a motionless way
(life is good for the bees)

"why do I need a swivel chair?
is that going to uplift me from my current position
someone tell me, how did these chairs come about?"

falling apart

when the sole of my shoe fell apart
I twisted my ankle
my knees gave away
I fell on the ground
my shin bone hurt
my elbows balanced my body
my cheeks pressed to the ground
I give away to tears
why when everything was going good
my shoe fell apart
taking me down
(serves me right)
I will not hitch a ride
I will muster my strength
from the wine I drank
in the late afternoon

"I want to call out, where are you 
but who cares?
I will sleep hugging the earth"

dead still

dappled sunlight reignites air
delirium leaves seem to pleat
in the strident fall
in the tombstones
one can hear swish of impending storm

which shell emits piercing sound,
is that an omen?
why don't I see birds in the splendor of a cemetery?
shouldn't they be soothed as I am calmed by the dead still?

innards

I am caught between the gutter and sidewalk
my heart thumps 
when I see the flickering sunset
my foot hits a bottle
I look down at my bloody toe
which has now carved into a stone
my legs have vanished
my shadow is crooked
and my innards gurgle out
I try to figure out why your body twitched 
when I am the one who is hurt

"I wake to find myself typing away furiously,
my words falling all over-
operation writing accomplished"

snaky tales

total darkness
pitch black
which contains eternity
their eyes merge after a while
heat shakes the hearts
slippery slithering bodies
of snakes entangle in knots

a captured momemt

you walk out in a huff
your plate of food unfinished
I run to the door to call you back
but you are nowhere to be seen
feeling sad and vulnerable
I walk back inside the house
and sit at the window
with a blurred vision
my thoughts in a turmoil
I wipe my tears, look out, 
see you talking on your cellphone

you sit inclined on a concrete sidewalk
your head bobbing up and down
I curse the person at the other end
you pocket your cellphone, 
sit there with a calmness that jars me

"is it my figment that I see the delivery boy
delivering a pizza to you, and you open it
close it again, and walk towards our home?"

stalker

Lee Friedlander, from America by Car

inside my car I sleep on the wheel
(don't worry, the car is stationary)
my head rolling after hours of driving
I am totally rusted out
can't you make it out from my glaze
which the clouds can't hide
I parked it in a crowded place
buildings all around
I dragged my feet too long over you
now my mind nods to for me to stalk you
my ragged breath walks on the blade's edge
I simply don't care about what is right
I don't wish to build bridges
or straighten my act any more
I am just too stretched out

"you want a new beginning
I will give you that in a gilded cage,
limber up your mind to be a prisoner"

a cross

Rage by AnnaMariaDeMari at deviantART

don't look into my insomniac eyes-
seemingly so, 
(I sleep like a log)
that cross on my forehead-
a mark I acquired 
when I fell down from the stars
but what of it?
I look like a fallen angel
with my gelled hair,
and unblinking stare
that air of haughtiness
you could never fathom my indomitable spirit
(just a fact I state)

"when I walk on the earth again, 
I find bliss in my obscure state"

hanging my head

broken feet, with no skin
I hang shoulder to shoulder with my siblings
these girls wear hoops
I forgive them for dancing around us
I wish for a burst of energy
that topples over the brink
may the bolt drop on these girls
may they drown in the shallows of some river
a shame I know
but do they deserve any better?

"putrid flesh has the power to preach-
just you see, just you see"

timed out

I paper walls
hiding hideous marks
left over from a time we lost
I like crinkled finish
bubbles formed under paper

do we ever find time,
why we say we lost it?

hambre

the vibrations
permeates into me
I try to transfer those to you
will you please accept it-
letting me have my way with you
piece by piece...
I....hunger.....for.....you
you.....hunger....for....me
why don't we let our bodies
follow our mind and hearts

"come admire the bond,
those silken ties......silken ties"

stolen moments

I lost it-
a goose bump to you
a whole universe for me
you hid it in the closet
along with few of my breaths
which I have saved from you
I wonder how you found my hiding place
where I have hoarded massive stuff
the moments I stole from you
that scar which bothered you
I have braided our intermingled breath
in the knob on the closet door
how did you find my hiding place
now yours too
yet I know too well
you will never find anything that I hid there
that coin wrapped in with your scent is all I have of you
not to forget the togetherness we had shared
in the floor by the fireside
I prefer those to be well hidden
from your prying self

"nailing that closet was never so tough"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I wrote a poem out of nothing and everything. We hoard keepsakes of material things apart from our memories. And I tried to create a poem from that memory, keeping out material things. Anyone else who does this, I would love to read it. I offer it as a prompt for We Write Poems...

alley and valley

music in my mind
flows into yours
intermingling both of us

love clutches my belly

I want to know why
the heart feels that flutter
while I learn you with my body

love clutches my belly

in the essence of you
I fall into overwhelming depths
to rise again to the fore

love clutches my belly

if it goes on like this
I will make that my banner
and post it in an alley

rambunctious tale

it was a close call
I jumped out of the coffee mug
that spoon saved my life
in the fallow garden near that pond
gulliver had visited me
saved me from the swallows-
gave me the obsolete mug to rest my case
I admire him for offering me crumbs
now I will read the rambunctious newspaper
until you get that automobile for my ride

"first tell me, why did want to scald me with hot coffee?"

much

it was love at first sight
that's what I thought.
I anticipated much-
river of emotions
to flow in between.

"but he was so enthralled by
friday night football"

peripherals

you stand so aloof
yet the stillness of your body
throbs against my own

************

I rub my chin
reflectively 
each pore of yours
is doorway to heaven

heaven I find
deep in your eyes
iris reflecting
I caress your spine

haunted by your scent
I house myself
in periphery
of my disintegration-
amalgamating into you

jumpstart

in my universe
it was a landmark
I turned eighteen
jump started life
already in college
studying intricacies of chemistry

just another day that dawned
eighteen, eighteen, eighteen

starry eyed
I had a flawed logic
all was well with the world
perfection I saw in everything
idealism was my motto
backing out wasn't

just another day that dawned
eighteen, eighteen, eighteen

next five years set my course
with ups and downs I sprang forth
I lost my love
numbers rendered sanity
chemical equations 
replaced equations of life

just another day that dawned
eighteen, eighteen, eighteen

that impact has lasted till date
I eject out flaws
and move forward
children show me the path
I pretend I do
a mask no one understands

just another day that dawned
eighteen, eighteen, eighteen
I am yet to preen

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Imaginary Garden With Real Toads have set a Musical Challenge, to "listen to the song(s) while going through your personal history, revisit pictures and memories and write a poem which will be your own chant". To know more check it out here. On my 18th birthday, Jump by Van Halen was number on US charts. I am not happy with my efforts but I am leaving it as it is, for now.

no song, this is?!

Away to the Sky by beloavaan at deviantART

with a muddled brain
I jumped from the roof
(gravity worked strange)
I landed on top of a cloud

when a giant bird pushed me again
I found some balloons
I stilled my heart, bent my ears
became a blind bird

no one wrote a song for me
or spoke about me
I now move over castles
waiting for a free fall

'when I kick you with my weightless feet,
all will know you killed me'

wings of fire

I am thankful for the wings
as I circle over the church
don't you remember how I was lost
looking for signs in the concrete jungle
as I trudged alone in the cobbled path
flying is an adventure
the fearful birds give me a wide berth

in my present state I look down,
see myriads of beings fighting for space.
And I fly far away

unspoken

I wrote that headline in my note book
you tore it
lonely page wandered
bereft of energy
a joke you said
I know better

music is the only language you understand

chained the present

I hid the present under the bed

chained it and put it in an iron trunk

It was creating nuisance all over

you and me and then some

that old trunk holds your whiff

it would do the present some good

that nightmarish after shave

I totally dislike,

I poured it in that iron chest

it will mingle with the past

make it a knot of sorts

I will add a card or two

and present the present to you

I am going out of that door to walk the future-

will wait for you near the creek to hold your hand

let me think of ways to jostle her back

let me think of ways to jostle her back

by some freak accident
she came to be here 
with her pet raven
an unknown place

let me think of ways to jostle her back

occasionally she has dreamed about this
cooped in that shop
where she clutched the chats
of strolling customers

let me think of ways to jostle her back

now the outside is her place
a move she likes
look how that raven 
motions in the rain

let me think of ways to jostle her back
on second thoughts, I will let her merge into the darkness

unhinged

I hammered nails
yet the door was askew
you shook it from its hinge
to make Plan B work
instead of door
we have a curtain

now everyone is amused by our innards

divisive

Photo Credit: Donn Coppens

you divided the earth
beating it down to splinters
it can not hold the filtering water
that rain trickles from up above
I see beyond the mountains
I wish to see fresh dew
but get a glimpse of the sky
split into two-
by that rainbow

"as if there was not enough hatred down here"

while the instrument plays

The Snake Charmer, Henri Rousseau, 1907

I yearn for an opal ring
with a verve
I want to strengthen my bonds
with that snake charmer
I fake a yawn
while my heart races
he rubs his fingertips on his instrument
while I pick the threads
in the mirror of snake eyes
his muse has raw edge
in the corridors of betrayal
he offers sheep to the snakes

"I find omen in that dull opal ring,
thrust that dagger deep into him"

thigh high

I declare open war
why don't you buy me a car
controls vibrate my thigh
In the autumn I feel high
if you think that's swell
I would settle for diamonds as well

...............................

WRITTEN TO THE MELODY OF: Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star

stapled maples...

Photo Credit: Reymundo

I haven't shed leaves yet
although it is that time
I look at my branched feet
look again up the sky
I, my brothers live in harmony
our branches embrace each other
some kid nailed ceramic sun
we are lucky to have him so near

"watch out, our branches might fall on your glass house"

spoken inside the head

I tackle the pawns to the ground
the rook runs backward
I move forward with ease
it is like a movie you know
where pictures overlap
I may work for the king
but I covet the queen
she ignores me in the day time
yet night's distractions make her close
I might have taken to the robes
you don't understand my secret desire
the pace is slow or fast,
let the queen decide
as I don't care for omissions

"I like to see things from cock-eyed perspectives
slithering up the diagonals"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I don't take credit for the last line. I edited it just a bit. It came from someone who creates pictures for us, where the beauty and ugliness of the world go hand in hand. He makes sure we understand. I can't name him here but he will know when he reads my poetry.......

an elusive world lurks

The Revenant, 1949, Andrew Wyeth

you gave me black eye
but I had a good fight
I like to show of my bruises
standing tall in my whites
my dirtied whites
yet I cause a sensation
wherever I go
women swoon over me
I sway in that adoration
and corners of the room
hold me upright
but when I look into your eyes
I see scorn in the blank stare
how much longer 
do I endure black eyes
to see a smile on your face?

it never comes
I know it will never ever come
but behind your pummeling
I can see your raging emotions

shreds

a roaring sound
you can still hear
in the eerie silence even now
I am scared of a simple jolt
my dignity lost in the debris
mother, may I hide in your womb again?
(my life as simple as before I was born)
build me a new world
a bold world
where I can walk without an urgent need to escape
mother, please tell our leaders
to cut out the theatrics 
scrape the old laws
protect us from their evil designs

"but if they do that , how would their pockets get filled?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There was a bomb blast outside the high court in New Delhi on 7th Sep, 2011, killing 13 people, injuring more than 60. Our government is totally useless and we are left to fend for ourselves.You can deduce the apathy of the Govt from knowing that a similar blast took place on 25th May, 2011 at the same place, and political leaders saying these blast are normal!! Do the power that are care? I don't think so...

My poem pours out from there, raw, unedited.......an anguish that can't be explained.....

invasion

you are not here-
you are here
my notebook knows
invisible words form there
emotions jump all over
spilling into my space

you invaded it, 
now refuse to let go

noting it all down

my notebook collects dust
papers flutter
the corners get folded
I move the dust with my fingers
cool air from the ocean touch me
the open window calls out
my eyes move over my notebook again
this time, it is electronic,
a very flat surface

"particles drift into each other
pour into impersonal electromagnetic aura"

hitching a ride in rusted trails

abandoned to erode
that wheel has tales to tell
I don't care to know
I think of all that I lost in snow
hazed snow of the mind
layered by layered
light is my focal point
stirring from dawn to dusk
resting in the darkness
to rejuvenate the heart
when I pick a rusted nail
I sandpaper it
observe the rust fall to ground
I still don't care.

"Can I hitch a ride from you to go to the next town?"