He promised that pretty soon
A man would land on the moon
They didn't quite make it
So he told them to fake it
It was harder than he'd presumed

The atom he wanted to split
But didn't quite manage it
So he changed his tack
And instead of that
Wrote a limerick

today is one of those days
when i
come unstuck
at the seams of
where i am joined to myself
they split open with a

*pop

pop

pop*

and so there is
a hole nobody knows about
--not one that hurts
but one that is sure to sear
my dreams tonight

- Vijayalakshmi Harish
   26.06.2013
   Copyright © Vijayalakshmi Harish

I count minutes like I count light reflections
Off the window.
I count them on every finger
And every toe
And every cancer cell
Spreading like a wild fire
Burning whatever it is we have left
There is a purity in destruction
A nothingness where weakness is strength
So I watch
Count
Savor the flavor of the minute
Glenfidditch
Fifteen
A sickness rising in me
Too much spice
I count the minutes
Like I watch the wind
My tongue burned.