We can all do with a hug some days -
Some kind words

And the presence of someone who believes in you
Who will never let you down
Who doesn't make you feel insignificant and small
Who appreciates and doesn't condemn
Who won't pull you low
But helps you get up
Who can flip a frown to a smile
Add a little glow
And turn tears to a tickle
Someone who can bring a spring in the step
And a twinkle in the eye
We can all do with love -
When the chips go down
Or even when the wheels are up

We can all do with a hug somedays
So here's one for you.

Think of me at dusk when stars
Cast the world in the light of night
When trees are washed in Selene's milk
And dreams are born in cream and white
Think of me when the morn rises
To the hum of feathers in a choir
When the sky's ablaze with scarlet shades
As dawn rides her chariot of fire

Think of me in waves of water
That arch to touch the golden grains
In woodlands sylvan, calm and quiet
Or in the music of the rain
Think of me in glens and meadows
Along silver streams and brooks that sprint
In gardens of lavender blue
And orchards tinged with fuchsia pink

So think of me, my love, think
Think of my love - so true
One day hoping you might love
Just the way that I love you

A garden of marigolds....orange, yellow and rust,
Bright, soft and rich, touched with golden dust.

Quiet and regal, sun kissed and fair,
Basil -citrus fragrance that mellows the moist air.

A thousand smiling marigolds, a thousand smiling suns,
Sweet nectar, ambrosia, for natures gentle ones.

Woven into garlands, yellow with tips  of red,
Woven into memories with many a words unsaid.

Love's hopes of an Indian  bride, clad in marigold,
With dreams wrought,  promises that two hearts dearly hold.

Tearful farewell to soldiers who traverse through destiny's doors,
A garland weaved with love for  those from across the seven shores.

And when the being is but a thought, as life grays and  olds,
Wrapped in a hearse of love, their love, with weeping marigolds.

An offering so humble yet flowers that Gods wear,
An offering with love,  with a souls quiet prayers.

Orange, yellow, rust..to love, to pray, to mourn,
Golden, sun kissed, blessed.. marigolds that life adorn.

Life has beauty in her nooks
In woods that trill of feathered songs
Where fireflies dance at dusk  
And starlight blankets night till dawn
In the rhythm  of falling rain
And drops of dew that shine on leaves
On mountain tops that reach the sky
The mystic shades of coral reefs

And if you feel spirits sag
Heavy eyes with burdens stressed
Rest your eyes on hyacinths
And on the moon cradling a crest
Catch the starlight streaming down
See angels in clouds that pass
Lay your head on a flower bed
Run bare feet on the grass

Life has beauty in her arms
In kindness and the touch of  love
In promises of hope and strength
Like the warm sun from above
In bouquets of wishes of care
Hands that tuck a flower in
Near and dear those precious ones
That soothe and balm a broken skin

And if you feel spirits sag
Heavy eyes with burdens stressed
Rest your head on a shoulder kind
And His eyes that forever bless
Your own shoulder, a solace be
Hands clasp another tight
For other spirits sag too
Then-
Into the beauty of the night.

Though I love those dark clouds
and though I love the rain -
how it brightened my heart
when the sun came out again

The sky - a sea of tranquility
as peaceful as could be
calm I felt when those warm rays
rested upon me

I'm sure I heard the roses laugh
saw carnations turn a richer hue
how could they but not smile
upon a sky so  blue

I saw the lake ripple merrier
in silver, copper streams
glistening with flowing joy
how it glimmered and beamed

Though I love those dark clouds
and I love the rain... I do
but how my heart gladdened today
for I can do with sunshine too

I hope the sun lingers long
shining through sheesham trees
for I love the way his rays rested..
so softly upon me

Yoke smiles
And twinkles from the eyes
Blend them together
Whisk, whisk, whisk
Till it all bubbles to
A perfect frothy fluffiness -

Heat some love
And tender words
Add fruit of human kindness
Mix, mix, mix
Some rinds of laughter
Blend it all well, in folds

Cup this
Into lightly buttered hands
Of giving

Then warm the heart
And put it in to bake

See happiness rise to a perfect gold

A simple recipe - the soufflé of life

Crisp outside
Molten and soft happiness within

I made those paper boats to sail
Folded by hands eagerly  
Then floated them in streams of rain
Now, they come to float in memories

A splash of toes in puddles of mud
As heaven's water washed the eyes
A song on lips of clouds and rain
As I raised my arms to hug the skies

So free and wild those days of yore
Such innocence in  breath of dawn
Laughter lingered through the  night
Oh, how quickly have those days all gone

And stories that grandmother told
Weaves and yarns that life unmasked
Now come back to me in dreams that drift
Like paper boats of the past

Summer skies glow like wine
with the  warmth of the season
in rich hues of burgundy

As the sun sets
the waves of the sea
soak themselves in shades of the sky
to leap like waves of fire
cradling the residual heat
of the last days of summer

The burnished hues at dusk
as if borrowed from autumn
whisper at sunset - the arrival of fall
that summer shall sleep a while to rest
and autumn flaunt her glory
in bronze and golden shadows
above amber eyes
a flaming heart
and pomegranate painted lips
- like a climatic peak of colours
before winter breathes
with white frosted air

One day
summer will wake again
fresh with the scent of blossoms
after the spring rains of life
and the birds will sing
the tune of seasons and time

On Loving You

I thought of a thousand reasons
why I shouldn't love you
I made a tally
a little score;
I thought and I thought
and I thought
only to know
how now I
love you even more


So Much Love to Give

A lifetime isn't enough for loving you
I have so much love to give
And if I could I would, my love
Just to love you
Another life I'd live.


Vintage Wine

Rich golden peaches
Bottled in a vintage wine
Heady
Sweet
Overwhelming -
This dear love of mine.


Like Chocolate

Gooey
Molten
Mushy
Warm

I melt like
Chocolate
In your arms

Summer moonlight that casts its spell
On beds of flowers and boughs on trees
That soaks the earth in ivory
Has spun a summer spell on me
For everywhere does beauty lie
With the moon aglow on the green and blue
Dreams cradle in rays that fall
'Fore dawn wakes with eyes of dew
And the stars scattered in the sky
That glow beside the sliver's light
Spin stories of worlds above
Down below in the heat of night
- Though sultry the summer air
Warm the breath of wind through trees
Yet the crest of ivory
Has spun a summer spell on me

In a reverie of joyous thoughts
I take myself to other worlds
Where tinkling streams of crystal flow
And summer breezes gently blow

Where beds of darkness love to  bloom
Beneath the cusp of a crescent moon
And stars that shine their light bright
Silver the paling ends of night

And when at dawn, the sun rises
To write poetry with rays of quill
The hills come alive with the scented  ink
Of  sunflowers and daffodils

Here clouds at dusk touch the earth
And drizzle rain on yearning trees
Nature's rhapsodic songs
Sing in unchained melodies

In this world of happy thoughts
Such sweet and joyous visions see
I linger there, longer to dream
In the solitude of a reverie

Chocolate silk
satin  smooth
every bite
melts within

Finger licking
temptation
but a touch
I give in

Scent a taste
fills the head
feel the senses
reel and  spin.

But a glimpse -
happiness
all cream 'n  soft
I begin

Sweet trail
on the lips
on laughter lines
almond skin

Oh some more
the heart pleads
and there I sink -
in chocolate whim

Rise softly, rise gently, waking dawn
And let the drowsy sun yawn a while
Beside me, my love sleeps in peaceful bliss
With crescent eyes and a crescent smile
The morning breeze may tease the blooms
That wait to unfold with the sun's blush
- But softly, blow gently, oh morning breeze
Let the wind chimes be still, quiet, hushed

Rest your melodies, singing birds and bees
And cease the fluttering of your wings
The hum, the drone, the medleys
Quiet the rustling and the whispering
Why gurgle so loud - river- change your course
Flow far away, past the mangroves
For how lustily you gush, bubbles and froth
Shhshh...love sleeps - eyes closed

But alas - the river stays, making its music
The birds from their songs shall never cease
And the morning breeze breathes free
Tinkling wind chimes, hustling leaves
Rise - the sun shall and burst in gold
And the world'll be in daylight's warm embrace
My love will waken yet I still revel -
For sun lights the grace of my love's face

Gentle falls the rain
A drizzle on senses
Cool drops on a warm eve
A symphony of water and trees
Mystic sounds - of the earth and the sky
Soothing the mind
Quietening the heat of a day of unrest
Brightening the hibiscus to a deeper crimson
Glowing with beads of water that cling
Unwilling to let go
As if they know
Some secrets of the green

And I - intoxicated
With the heady scent of a soaked earth
And the fragrance of motiya
Mellow basil that glistens wet
Like the parched, brown earth
That eagerly awaits the gift of clouds -
Like a lover
In the moist union of the elements
- Soak each drop with joy

I would love to be summer to your heart 
And autumn to brightly colour your days 
Winter too - in her graceful beauty 
And spring in all her glorious array 

I would love to be the summer rain 
That falls on you from an open sky 
Or the winter's welcome golden sun 
That warms and touches with a smile

I would love to be that blowing breeze 
That sings  the sweetest melodies 
The joy of seasons - that lifts the heart
Shielding you neath love's canopy

Hear the gentle summer breeze
Whisking through gulmohar leaves
In the music of wind chimes
Tinkling songs of summer time
Feel her quiet on the skin
Filling hearts imaginings
See her as the blossoms dance
In the cusp of dawn's romance
In saplings that take a bow
In wind blown hair tousled now
Petals touched by her stir
Silken soft in gossamer
Light and dark shadows play
On shrubs of green bunched bouquet
While butterflies and bees sup
Drink nectar from sun's molten cup

Take your quill and pen some notes
Love lyrics in melody 
Songs of passion and romance
Write them, love, just for me

Strike a chord, hum a note
Give the words music sweet
Make my heart go flutterin' tappin'
Sweep me off my feet

Then sing them baby like you do
But sing them soft and low
Don't pitch a note too high, my love
For off key you do go

Clear your throat and gargle
Then sing a pretty tune
 Drink some honey lemon tea
Then smoothly you might croon

My hearts a buzz with throbbin' romance
But then it goes off course
Your love notes go all awry, sorry
And you my love sound hoarse

So sing me a love song baby
Try not to go off key
I'll waltz into your waitin' arms 
Love- dancin' you and me

There is music at dawn in the song of the koyel
The tweeting, the chirping, the warbling,the cry
The medleys that float in the morning air 
As birds sing a welcome to a rising sky 

There is music in the span of feathered  wings 
The steady drone of the humming of a bee
As the sun revels on his throne at noon 
While a brisk wind whisks leaves on willow trees 

There is music in the silver drops of rain 
A gentle drizzle or a thunder squall 
Music in the flow of rivers and streams 
And the sparkling cascade of a waterfall

There is music on slopes of lofty mountains 
In echoes that reverberate of a water spring 
In the soft rustling of a valley of flowers 
Of blue irises and pink hyacinths 

There is music in seas and oceans blue 
Waves overreaching to meet the shore
Rippling in sounds of frothy ecstasy 
Whispers of pearls and ocean floors 

There is music at dusk when the day rests 
The throaty croaks in a nocturnal sheer
As moths flutter drawn to light 
'Tis music of life that I hear

Red wine 
Dark chocolate 
A warm night 
Love and lust

The moon winks 
The stars hide 
The clouds pink
In crimson blush 

Summer breeze 
Candles flicker 
Flames dance 
All is shed 

You burn me softly 
With your love 
And fire me 
With kisses red

Sheets tangle
In silken passion 
There's you 
And there's me 

More than romance 
Is romance 
'Tis love in rhythm 
And sweet poetry

Like a stream that meanders
Cantering music sweet
Caprice treads whimsical
Lightly on her feet.

Like the wind that doesn't know
Where to gently breeze
Caprice breathes here, then there
... the air touched 'n teased.

Like the midnight stars that twinkle 
Through the darkness peer
Caprice in a wink
Appears to disappear.

Like the morning sunlight
That hides, then lights up hills
Caprice scampers up and down
Never a moment still.

Like waves and ocean tides
That ebb, rise and flow
Caprice heaves night and day..
Between her joys and woes.

Like raindrops and the rainbow
That hold the other's hand
Caprice sighs and smiles
In but a single glance.        

I wonder... if you sense her
Her murmurs, feel her warm breath
Caprice... right behind you..
Though you haven't seen her yet.

Dreams are made of chocolate huts
With burgundy windows, cherry **** doors
Sweet icing on cream layered roofs
Almond -walnut -caramel floors

Dreams are made of iris and jasmine 
Jacarandas lined in purple rows
Tree blossoms in clustered cobs
Petals that dance like a ballerina's toes

Dreams are made of fern green forests
Oakwood trees  that cast a spell 
A  gossamer web of magic and charm
The music of clinking coins in a wishing well

Dreams are made of cerulean skies
Contrails of clouds in ivory snow
Violet mystic misty mountains
A  tangerine orb riding a rainbow

Dreams are made of romance laced nights
A golden peach vanilla moon
Venus lighting, igniting,love's fire
The silhouette  of love in rain soaked June

Dreams are made of turquoise seas
Calm waters stroked by gentle waves
Or enticed by the charm of a midsummer night
Waters that heavenly Cynthia craves

Dreams are made of silk and satin
Dappled with reds, greens and blues
But the dreams that I love to dream the most
Are all the dreams made of you

Through the dancing leaves of the palms
And tufts of clouds that fill the skies 
Like a hymn, a song, a prayer, a psalm 
How beautiful is the sunrise
Curve by curve - gently rising 
The orb of pink, then orange glow 
Eyes like spheres hold the lighting 
Enthralled as the gold grows
Inch by inch, his presence felt 
The majestic sun - so bows the night 
Heating the ground - the day melts 
The breath of rays; the hope of life 
Sing the birds their morning song 
Spreading their wings to fly in bliss 
I too sing along 
Touched by the warmth -
And sun-kissed

It is the same garden that holds,
Prickly rose bushes,
Healing basil and spritely marigolds.

It is here the bees fly, birds rest their wings,
It is here every morning the nightingale sings.
It is here the hare scampers, the squirrel scurries,
The snake slithers, the rodent hurries.
It is here the gecko hides, the worm crawls,
The bat flies when darkness falls.

In the mud and the dirt, the soil and the gravel,
In coarse little stones, smooth little pebbles,
In  topaz skies, in waters azure,
In a lotus that blossoms in a world impure.
In the siesta of flowers, the fiesta of leaves,
In the dance of raindrops serenaded by  a breeze.
In summer's golden glare, autumns russet finger
In the green breath of spring, the white hand of winter..

Beauty in His creations, in every season,
In every color for a rainbow of reasons.
Each special and each rare,
Each, in a bough or burrow,
Has a niche somewhere.

my heart loves when the sun 
flares  with a copper glow
when dusk drapes and falls 
a curtain of indigo

my heart dances when it rains 
then when it's gold with shine 
for when dark clouds gather
I see a silver line

my heart is young with flowers
that in wilderness grow
a forest of quaint scents 
that in the winds softly blow

my heart smiles with the stars
shining atop pine trees
the sliver of a cosmic moon
cradled in the sea

my heart rides on the crest 
of waves on the ocean floor
that kisses a pearl rare
and floats it on the shore

my heart loves these moments
that I with nature be
but none, more splendid, more beautiful
than those of you with me

In between the greying
and the silvering
work and life
the sombre brooding of time
and the lull after the storms
poetry crept upon me
word by word
phrase by phrase
in a metaphor
letters from the heart
filling gaps of loneliness
with welcome solitude

He said with ardor that he loves me
That his heart for my heart pines
Of this obsession I see 
Insanely innocuous signs.
He called me his Winnie the Pooh
His panda and his dove
(Ought I lock myself in the zoo?
Seems I'm an animal that he loves).
He said that like an anthology
I was an interesting read
(He doesn't know the e of my etymology
For I'm written all in Greek).
He said that he would be thrilled
To have me as his wife
(But if I were to light his kitchen
He'd have a short shelf life).
He said that like the sky
My eyes were blue and deep
That my voice was a sweet lullaby..
(Dear me! Should I put him to sleep?).
He said that my pretty smile
Was as wide as a well made road
(Well, he'd have to run for miles
Before he reached my sweet abode).
He said that I was a Wonder
Like the great barrier reef
(I sure hope he goes down-under
I might get some reprieve).
I think it's really not me
That with fervor he thinks he loves
But what he wants me to be
For I am none of the above.
And when I am by his side
Like a bubble I do burst
From him, I must hide
For he brings out my very worst.
And so my handsome lover boy
He rants on and on
How atrociously he annoys
So ****, scram and begone!

Layer by layer,  I unravel love
And see the interlocking of eyes with passion 
Inhale the scent of romance, of you 
Feel the intertwining and gripping of hands 
Taste the sweetness of your breath 
Hear the sound of my heart beating 
In rhythm with yours 
In the climatic union 
Of two souls

Step into to her world, a world where she lives -
Of colors a plenty and flavors many,
A flick of a hand, in measures she gives,
Spices that tantalize, worth every penny.
Red chillies an ounce, turmeric a pound,
Spices scarlet, earthy, exotic,
Peppercorns, cardamoms, whole or ground
Brown bay leaves, cinnamon, aromatic.
Wonders for the body that soothe and heal,
Nurturing from nature, a stoic promise,
From the choicest gardens, as senses reel,
Fragrance of flavors in sensual bliss.

Within her world, another world entices...
Her voice in sweet whispers has tales to tell,
Magic in dark eyes, the mistress of spices,
With a flick of her hand she'll cast her spell.

( inspired by the title of the book with the same name. )

Sweeter than the song of a nightingale 
Gentler than the whisper of a spring wind
Quieter than the murmur of  summer  grass 
Softer than the symphony of hyacinths 

Hypnotic like the splash of blue seas
Tinkling like a stream that flows 
Mesmerizing like the cadence of rain 
Enchanting like the hush  of snow 

Like the faint breath of a scarlet dawn 
The rustle of clouds on a turquoise high 
A duet of  night and an ivory moon
A Capella of  stars in the sky

A hymn, a chant, a choir of angels 
Singing  on a rainbow of time 
Celestial is the serenade of love  
A tune and a note divine.

This day
That rises after deep slumber
Peering  from a drowsy, flushed horizon
Rubbing eyes sleepy with morning dew
Hiding stars that wink unnumbered, scattered
And a moon that will diminish slowly, sliver by sliver
Rustling a cool breeze to ruffle the tops of trees
Scenting the sinuous rivers of a rain soaked summer
Unveiling earth, sheer by sheer only to veil the cosmos
Within the arms of the sun and the palms of the clouds
Holding the feathers of songbirds with wings like leaves
Their music no longer mute by the silence of sleep
This day - that unfolds like a flower, petal by petal
Waits for you, only for you
To embrace
And make yours

Monsoon Rhapsody



I am rain on a summer day
Drenching drowsy, lifeless buds
Stirring them to a dancing wakefulness
Washing leaves dull and dry with dust
Dousing fire in a desert ringed inferno

I am the drizzle on a pale moon night
Easing into the heart with music
The melange of water humming with the wind
The splash of puddles in fields of barley
Gently filling thirsty river beds craving for a flow

I am showers before monsoons
Impregnating the air with soothing droplets
The hint of life in an oasis of colours
Breathing moist on a farmer's bronzed skin
Tingling the world with shimmering emerald

I am sawan, the monsoons
Winding my way through a chorus of clouds
Thundering my presence into the sea of renewal
Cascading on sandy shores that glisten with light
Whisking away waves of gold with jubilant darkness

I drape the land in arrays of greens
Scent the soil in my fragrance
Dance with the rhapsodic dance of the peacock
Wreathe petals into flowers that vine
And curve in the soil of growth.