Friends, this is a short reflective poem which I have recently composed for you. Hope you like the same, - Raj, 27 March 2021, New Delhi.

       * REFLECTION OF ETERNITY*
The old withered man had wide big eyes,
His eyes had the color of deep blue sky.
His white long beard had few streaks of
Black.
While matted locks of snowy hair flowed
down his back.
He sat on a pavement wearing a faded
dusty cloak,
Mostly remained ignored, while some
even laughed calling him an old bloke!
Few coins were tossed inside a small
bowl lying by his side,
As he sat on the pavement with nothing
to declare or hide.

Perhaps he was caught up in Time’s wrap
woven by destiny and fate.
It was difficult to tell if he was sane or
insane,
Or how many moons had passed over
his head.
Perhaps he waited to be liberated from
this earthly cycle of life and death.
Since his wide blue eyes mirrored eternity,  
As he stared into the fathomless depth
of celestial blue space!
                                           -Raj Nandy, New Delhi.

Friends, this short love poem is to usher in the Season of Spring on this Basant Panchami Day, and is dedicated to our veteran romantic poet Fay Slimm of Cornwall, SW England, and also to
all my Readers here. Hope you like the same, - Raj, New Delhi, 16 Feb 2021.
    
  THE MAGICAL TOUCH OF SPRING!
With the arrival of the magical month of Spring,
When the bees and the birds begin to buzz and
sing,
Love gets ignited in the hearts of young lovers
as they meet,
Under the cool shade of an evergreen tree.

With her face shining like the full moon,
Her large dark eyes like two glistening pools,
Wearing a white dress with earrings dangling
from her ears,
And with a coy smile on her face, -
She steals the heart of her lover away!

Love soon gets ignited on both the sides,
As they gaze into each other’s eyes,
And soon get charmed and hypnotized!
Thus love’s flame consumes them both as birds
chirp and sing,
One may blame it on Cupid’s arrows, or on this
enchanting month of Spring.
Or perhaps it was destined and ordained by fate,
That they should meet and fall in love on their
very first date!
                                       -Raj Nandy, 16 Feb 2021
NOTES:-
According to Greek mythology Cupid's arrow is one of the arrows that Cupid is supposed to fire from his bow. A person struck by the arrow immediately falls in love. So Cupid's arrow means Love.

I dedicate this poem to all my Friends here, as I narrate the interesting facts about Snowflakes,which is seen in abundance during this time of the year, as I wish them all A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR 2021. A Snowflake is a single ice crystal hardly visible to our naked eyes. During 1805, an American Wilson Bentley for the first time captured in his camera by magnifying them several time for us to see!  Best Wishes from – Raj, New Delhi, on the New Year’s Eve of 31st December2020.

VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR 2021 TO MY FRIENDS
    WITH MY TRIBUTE TO SNOWFLAKES
                    Composed By Raj Nandy

Deep within the snow covered landscape,
Lies a Symphony of Nature’s microscopic
beauty unseen!
Lying crystallized in a multitude of Snowflakes,
Like a vast hidden world of dreams!
Till young Wilson Bentley became the first,
To photograph the Snowflake’s hidden work
of Art!
These flakes are minute crystals of hexagonal
shapes,
Where no two flakes ever look the same!
Some are shaped like needles and dendrites,
While others like star crystals look bright.

Perhaps those Heavenly Stars from eons past,
Watching mankind that turns to dust,
With their petty quarrels and strife,
And with all their arrogance and pride,
Vainly trying to challenge God’s might;
So they shed their starry tears all through the
night!
Their tears float down as they waltz through
space,
Falling gently like some gossamer lace,
To get congealed into Snowflakes white,
Presenting in the morning a dazzling sight,
Like a drapery over Nature of dazzling white!
While all our impurities they cover and hide,
Those little Snowflakes of little pearly ice, -
Makes the Earth appear like Paradise!
Snowflakes are God’s unique work of art my
friends,
We humans cannot achieve His artistic level of
excellence!
                                                      - Raj Nandy, New Delhi,
NOTES :-
It was young Wilson Bentley , who in 1805 , fitted a microscope
to his camera to take the first photographs of Snowflakes ! He
thereby exposed this hidden world of Art to our World ! Hexagonal in shape each snow crystal is made up of about 200 separate crystals with the bonding of hydrogen & oxygen atoms, – forming an infinite variety of patterns, where no two snowflakes look the same! Snow crystals grow faster near 5 degrees Fahrenheit , - falling on ground with temperature below freezing ! The 6 basic shapes of Snowflakes are; - Plate or Flat,  Stars , Needles , Dendrite, and Capped column shape.
**ALL COPYRIGHTS RESERVED BY RAJ NANDY

Dear Friends, as the year 2020 comes to a close, the poet Raj Nandy here shares his few nostalgic and passing thoughts, as he sits in his rocking chair and ponders about life. Dedicated to John Stevens who is also on his 77th year like me.With best wishes, - Raj, New Delhi.

A POET’S NOSTALGIC THOUGHTS
When the Autumn leaves start to fall,
With Winter lurking just behind,
The year is gradually coming to a close,
With nostalgic memories haunting my
mind.

Those loving faces I had once known,
Have all departed one by one.
As I sit and dose in my rocking chair,
Bathed by the Autumn’s mellow sun.

Those nostalgic faces beckon me,
As the day gradually comes to an end.
And I ponder in my rocking chair,
Has all this living been in vain?

Next, I hear and see Children laugh
and play,
Around the Snowman they had made.
Life’s eternal force is suddenly all
around me,
Which shall surely conquer death!

The Winter has been severe this year,
And the landscape is covered in a thick
blanket of ice.
But the snow shall melt one day and
buds shall bloom,
Can Spring my friends be far behind?
                                                    -By Raj Nandy, 27 Dec 2020.
NOTE:-
In  Poetry the  imagery of Children & Spring have been traditionally used to represent resurgence and continuation of Life.

CONTINUING WITH THE SPIRIT OF CHRISTMAS
HERE IS THE STORY BEHIND THE ENGLISH HYMN:
          “ONWARD  CHRISTIAN  SOLDIERS”

"Onward, Christian Soldiers" is a 19th-century English hymn. The words were written by Sabine Baring-Gould in 1865, and the music was composed by Arthur Sullivan in 1871. Sullivan named the tune "St Gertrude," after the wife of his friend Ernest Clay Ker Seymer, at whose country home he composed the tune. The Salvation Army adopted the hymn as its favoured processional. This piece became Sullivan's most popular hymn. The hymn's theme is taken from references in the New Testament to the Christian being a soldier for Christ, for example II Timothy 2:3 (KJV ) :  "Thou therefore endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ."

Now Arthur Sullivan was the son of a military bandmaster, who composed his first anthem at the age of eight, and was later a soloist in the boys' choir of the Chapel Royal. ... To supplement the income from his concert works he wrote hymns, parlour ballads, and other light pieces, and worked as a church organist and music teacher.

    LYRICS OF THE FAMOUS HYMN
“Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before.
Christ, the royal Master, leads against the foe;
Forward into battle see His banners go!
o Refrain:
Onward, Christian soldiers, marching as to war,
With the cross of Jesus going on before.
At the sign of triumph Satan’s host doth flee;
On then, Christian soldiers, on to victory!
Hell’s foundations quiver at the shout of praise;
Brothers, lift your voices, loud your anthems raise.
Like a mighty army moves the church of God;
Brothers, we are treading where the saints have trod.
We are not divided, all one body we,
One in hope and doctrine, one in charity.
Crowns and thrones may perish, kingdoms rise and wane,
But the church of Jesus constant will remain.
Gates of hell can never ’gainst that church prevail;
We have Christ’s own promise, and that cannot fail.
Onward then, ye people, join our happy throng,
Blend with ours your voices in the triumph song.
Glory, laud, and honor unto Christ the King,
This through countless ages men and angels sing.”
……Posted by Raj Nandy of New Delhi.……

Friends, I welcome the Season of Christmas with lesser known facts about Rudolph and the other Reindeers who brings Santa loaded with gifts for the children! I have also posted the lyrics of this popular song here below, –Raj Nandy, New Delhi, 01 Dec 2020.

WELCOMING THE CHRISTMAS SEASON WITH -
     ‘’RUDOLPH THE RED-NOSED REINDEER’’!

A Sad Beginning - With a Popular Melodious Ending:
The original story of Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer began in 1939,
With a Jewish Chicago copywriter named Robert May.
May  worked in the ad department of Montgomery Ward, a department
store chain,
Which every year purchased and gave away free Christmas coloring books
to children.
In 1939 they decided to create their own brand, and tasked May to
compose about an animal for amusement of children as best as he can.
May did so in August, following the death of his wife due to cancer, with a small daughter Barbara left behind to look after!
Remembering his daughter’s love for deer at the Lincoln Park Zoo, May composed about a little reindeer with a shiny nose.
That year during Christmas Montgomery Ward distributed 2.4 million copies which became very popular!
In 1940, May’s brother-in-law Johnny Marks, a song writer, composed the famous lyric to the legendary song as we know today.
Gene Autry sang the lyrics recording as hit No. I on the US Charts the week  of Christmas of 1949 as records say!

Lesson Embedded in the Song:
The other reindeers named Dasher, Dancer, Prancer, *****, Comet, Cupid, Donner and Blitzen,
All bullied the Rudolph, the youngest of them all who had a bright red shining nose, and left him out of all their reindeer games!
But in the true spirit of Christmas, Santa selected Rudolph to lead and guide his sleigh,
Thereby disapproving all types of Racial Discrimination due to one’s Looks!
Now friends read the Lyrics of this legendary song which has been sung by various famous singers like Dean Martin, Nat King Cole etc,
And they are all available on ‘You Tube’ for free listening!

Lyrics of The Famous Song:
“You know Dasher and Dancer and Prancer and *****
Comet and Cupid and Donner and Blitzen
But do you recall
The most famous reindeer of all?
Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
Had a very shiny nose
And if you ever saw it
You would even say it glows
All of the other reindeer
Used to laugh and call him names
They never let poor Rudolph
Join in any reindeer games
Then one foggy Christmas Eve
Santa came to say
"Rudolph, with your nose so bright
Won't you guide my sleigh tonight?"
Then how the reindeer loved him
As they shouted out with glee
"Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer
You'll go down in History"
…………………………………………………………………………………………….

Friends, this is a recent composition of mine as a very senior citizen, hope you like it, - Raj

FEW REFLECTIONS OF A SEPTUAGENARIAN
As one grows old with whitened, wrinkled,
mellowed maturity,
One begins to discern a wholesome unity, behind
many apparently disjointed things!
For example preparing good food, creating good music,  
and making love, -  all collectively,
Form a wholesome part of Creative Human Artistry!
Well cooked food with homemade wine, pleases
our taste buds providing real satisfaction.
Stan Getz’s creative saxophone with Dave Brubeck’s
melodious piano, enchants our auditory receptors, -
Transporting us mentally to an elevated dimension!
While during love making, artistic Foreplay results in
blending of passion culminating in a crescendo of
creative ******, -
With the release of built up tension!
Even though during these Corona days, Platonic love
is expected to keep us relatively safe!

Now, all these apparently divergent activities require
creative expertise and devotion,
To achieve real-time earthly satisfaction and happiness.
Though Spiritual Seekers look forward to an after- life,
Lying well beyond our limiting five human senses!
                                                                     -Raj Nandy, New Delhi
                                                                      27 Nov, 2020