today,
i am finally giving up the lie i hide behind.
an intricate labyrinth of webs spun by my fast fingers and rapid mouth.
i,
am a hypocrite.

my life is a series of encouraging the ones i love to the best of my ability.
doing the most i can to boost their morality,
showing them their self worth,
proving to them that they,
are amazing.
and that they,
will be okay.
but who can preach about all of these things,
when they themselves are a liar.
when they themselves can't even stand to look in the mirror
because of the disappointment they know they'll find.
when they themselves are telling other people that they are extraordinary, reminding them how much you love them,
when you don't even love yourself.
you don't even like yourself.
and the only thing keeping you down on the ground
is because you would never want to hurt the ones you love.

it's easier to tell other people all these wonderful things that you see in them
but have never seen within you.

- a.g.

The rain drizzles,
Some birds whistle.
Gently and gradually warm sensations fizzle.
Wow!! The accuracy of the universe is beyond mechanical precision.

In a scuffle for recognition,
Each animal developed a distinct sound that will stand as a mark of identification for millenniums until evolution takes pre-eminence in all ramifications.

Smarter than all animals,cunning in skills and crafty in dealings came the sapiens.
He processed things mentally with the speed of light not minding its limited size.
It could tame all other animals which where a hundred times its size because its brain was a well developed device.

Amidst men,some men stood out for their skills in Academics,science,humanities,medicine and engineering.
Beyond their natural eye focal length they extended their vision to a radius far above the limitations of mediocre imaginations and consolidated thier works for future generations in writting.

Give me a pen and I will conquer the universe.
Teach me to use the pen and I will reshape the earth.
Give me an audience and I will reform your minds.
Watch me write and I will show you the meaning of might.
By Israel Sajini(SAJO)

After years of aimless wanderings
Leaving behind the cities of midnight revels
And the fevered journey in metro rails,
I am back at the land of my people.

Wherever I went,
Under which ever roof I slept,
I had carried my land,
As a jewel in a casket
And ensured it rested safe
Ever under my pillow

As I moved with aliens
Unable to merge with their cultural mores,
I saw my land glimmer in darkness
Like a dew drop on a moon blanched leaf

When I sweated in the blistering sands
A patch of green landscape, like an oasis
Wafted me in a cool embrace
Then dreams poured in like star light
And I wandered in the meadows of my youthful love
My heart struggling to forget old longings
And memories lashing upon me like tidal waves

Pursued by that inalienable shadow
Suddenly being born in flesh and blood
I hastened to the streets of my youth
With hopes galore and plans vivid

But alas! There is none to recognize me
Oh! I am a stranger here
An unwelcome stranger among total strangers
Now I wonder which is truly my land?
The one left behind or the one just landed in?

Oscillating between these two worlds,
My fractured identity looms large
With worms of memories wriggling in my flesh
And a myth suddenly dying in my brain

I cannot pick a color
I love more
Each is thrilling
and some seem
the breath of life to all the rest
I loved my crayons
They became my escape
from misery
the contrast to any given day at school

Any excuse to use them all
or just one
to avoid that lowest reading group
the monstrosities of math
If I couldn't sing it
there were no letters in the alphabet
I could not tell you A from Z

But you see--
That day was
purple!
That was all that mattered
I loved its richness and its depth
its mystery
its royalty
King Midas would have liked it, I was sure
almost a religion
Vestments of the priest
in the times of expectation
It is the explanation for

the last of day

As a five-year-old
I drew my love for purple
Passionate
and outside all the lines-- off onto the desk
I was so proud!
But--

Miss Platt, so horrified
asked,

What is it
I was trying to do?

I didn't know....

I was suddenly ashamed
and frightened too

“Flattery will get you nowhere,”
a third or fourth grade teacher told this
to our entire class.
For some reason it’s never left me.

Because of those words, I never aim to flatter
and am immediately wary of those
who engage in and succumb to it.
It’s not genuine - I believe that was her point.

So I would rather touch your mind,
notice the small things before they slip
through dusty cracks,
be entranced by the way your hair falls,
and be spellbound by the rhythm
of your words.
I’ll avoid flowery gestures or bodacious words,
instead let me speak truthfully of what I see.
There is no room for pedestals here,
it is your humanity that touches me so.
It’s the trusting way you reveal yourself
despite the teeth of us both.
It’s the way you’re bashful for no reason,
but the reason is there somewhere
unknown to me
I know.

I could compare you to the sun and sky
and all the universe in between,
and perhaps I have and still will,
but in the end
it is your imperfect and unique existence
upon this planet
that I adore so much.