Gently cross over the wooden bridge
You have places to go
The bridge has to be there for every passer-by
Dawn to dusk, weathered, not yet to dust
Into the forest deep,
where the rivers rumble and roar
and sing lullabies

I watch my problems away
Only to add more
I watch my problems away
When I am happy
And I want to watch more
I think I watch my problems away
Only to add more
Until the reel has taken over the real
The real problem is the reel
And I can never ever watch my problems away, once more…
I want to scrub them away
They keep piling on the floor
They know what I like
And want me to subscribe
No I am not a fool
No not twice
I know I can’t watch my problems away

Time when inspiration
Knocked at my door
Its visit always welcome
I would feed it well
All satiated, with a warm heart,
wishing me happiness,
it would gently depart

Now I tend to ignore
As I do the chores,  
Or simply while away
An umpteenth time
A sullen face and dewy eyed
Unrevoked
Inspiration gathers dust
At some wanting door

Limbless
In a vacuum
Swims my mind

Little flower
That blooms
Anonymous

Leaf abound green
Leafless chills
In autumn

Awake the owl
Night sleeps
It preys

Truth is layered
The Sun defies
Lies

Broken
The words
Knew a chain

Sand castle crumbles
A child weeps
By the shore
A wonder created torn

Grains of sand
Held in tiny palms
Lost to the shore
Unsure

Mother’s gentle kiss
And a warm embrace
Rebuilds a mound
Of hope

Waves rise and fall
A dance, fleeting though
The ocean shows
A castle afar in throes

Joy of building
And losing, to waves
A castle fragile
Like dreams, unfold

Every day is today
Until it turns into yesterday or tomorrow

Every day I think, I will do the tasks
I had planned
But then, yesterday and tomorrow take over again

Is it ok dear Everyday
If you keep changing attires
Cause new and old
Is what seems to be your fate every day

Everyday yesterday
Today or tomorrow
Each of them forever
From each other do borrow

Leafy boughs
Cradle the sol
Into calm repose

Hello it’s me
Yes that’s right
I am May

I came here
Just after April
Left

She had to
That’s how we make way for each other
I will too, for June

I have days to keep
The Calendar, minds me
But in my mind
I am free

For the days
I have, you can
Do as you like
For as long as you have me

As today I am
In a few days, I won’t be
May you thrive
Be it me, or
May not
That’s how it is

Unbeknownst to the human eye
The tiny frog, lived in the forest, anonymously free
Dewy, evergreen its home
Its existence it knew
In its ecosystem
It grew

Caught unaware
It landed onto the palm
No not the leaf
And that’s when the discovery
Made news
Until then it lived
And so did its ancestors
Free
Of speculations
Unbothered
By its size
Until it was
Branded
A new specie
The human
Classified

🥀

Why
And For how long
Why can’t beauty, just be admired
Why does it attract hatred
Why does one want to own it
Why can’t it be set free
Free as it can be
Mother Earth
Births

Why do we hold hostage

Boundaries are set
Why can’t they be respected
Why
A sheet of white, admired
Cold and clean
Struck and sprayed
Unawares, the innocent not spared
Scarlet, cries everywhere
Why
And for how long
🥀

Blooming
In the darkest of hue
Brightest of colours
Vibrant orange, magenta and red
Summer’s at its peak
The flowers speak

Gulmohar’s orange glow
Like a sweet memory
Of summer retreat
A bouquet one can never hold

Bougainvilleas
Sigh on the lattice
Like cascading rills
Of magenta pinks

Beauteous reds
Roses and Hibiscus
In the garden grow
Tempestuous

I have always had an aversion to it
I would blurt out the worst
If you would show me pretence
Of care
Of love
Of togetherness
Of being one
No no don’t do that
I am old now
Enough to understand
Pretence
I won’t blurt out things
I wouldn’t put up to it
My duties fulfilled
There I am done
Now I know
Pretence

Too lost
To find
Words, far behind

Bridges everywhere
No destination
Destined

Spaces built
Indoors empty
Felt

Don’t look deep
The end‘s nowhere
To find

Flowers simmer
In summer, a relief
April showers

I know it’s you
Can see the similarities
Even though masked

I know it’s you
I have an instinct and I know
That’s true

But who is to say
Masks protect, so we wear
A sight, not rare

He walked in the fields alone
The clouds above big and heavy
Dark grey, filled with gloom
Every other noon

There was no road
Unsettling music was played in the sky
Orchestrated by the clouds

He walked unafraid
Not knowing his fate
Desirous of the rains

He had tilled the land
Until it grew green
Prosperity rained

He stumbled upon the gold
In the ancestral remains
Deserted by the predecessors
He thanked every grain

A colony raised
In a box, elixir gold
Bonded Bees toil

Experiences
Vicarious or the ones lived
Leave a mark, indelible

The teacher said
Stretch your limits to the maximum
It might surprise you

Little surprises
Bring a delight
Some are off limits

Wayward fedora
Shimmies in the breeze
Treetops

We strive to manage, what we can control
And control
what we manage

Why do we feel sad
When good things come to an end
Difficult to accept
Everything is transient
The sense of loss
Sinks in fast
Forgetting the happiness it brought

Why is it said
Everything that happens is for good
When
None of the experiences lasts
New avenues, do await
But
How do you move on

Like a sweet fragrance
It lingers, the memories of your childhood and youth
Vague, some lost to the years
A few remain, un-erasable
Like a mark
An impression on your heart

A part of you that you forgot
A part of you erased
Relived again, even if for a few moments
As you meet friends from school
Recalling the times and some incidents  about each other
Even though fragmented, these memories and moments, like a treasure remain

Breathing light through stained glass, from the school Chappel that we visited
Felt divine and the memory transcends
Even closer to the heart, lest the present buries the past
A promise made to keep in touch
Until we meet again

We celebrate freedom in words
In verse and in literary gaze
In languages unknown
Connecting through
Chords and notes
Musically bound

Across the globe
Gallivanting
Through time and space
Crossing boundaries

Colours of Holi
Unites us like a rainbow
One in spirit

Every shade illuminates
Under the big warm sun

Left alone on the highway
Close to the high rise
Two Banyan trees
Alone, yet side by side
Branches stretched upwards, towards the sky
The birds make nests
Birthing sweet melodies
Every morning as the sun crests

Dusty in summer
Their life spared
Reminiscing times
Of the forest  
That was thriving green

Missing the younger ones
And many a comrades
Deemed unimportant
As trees
Who lost the battle
To the concrete

With my interests in tow
And my feelings bottled in an anti spill jar
I set out for places afar

Marinating emotions
By the ocean

Consumed by the sea

To sink in the view
From the ocean’s blue

If only I could express
If only there were words enough
To say
How I feel about you
When you sway, in your red flowy dress
Dear hibiscus
I miss you everyday
I wander off on the streets
In search
Someday
I will find
Where you once lived,
Was loved, spread the same

When she nurtured you
As a sapling, with all the tenderness
You grew in the garden
Where love was supreme
Free flowing, the best
Today, she misses you
In a rocky place
She fetched some dry twigs
Wandered off the streets
Desperate in her search
Of her precious, ever flowering
Red Hibiscus

Worn on a T-shirt
In line with the heart
Why do you need it
Cause opinions
Limit you
Limitless possibilities
Await, unburdened
Being limitless
Can bring limitations
Cause you are bound
Gravitationally

The sun rose up to a woken slumber
On the west side of the sky
Not realising it was afternoon
For the people on the earth
Surprised they didn’t know which way to go
On a winter’s day, when not many are outdoors
Was it rise or to set, that the sun chose today
To see if it was alright to go other way

I knew the world
The world that I knew
Kept me spinning
On its axis
Still my feet firmly planted
Scented flowers, whirled down
Free, fresh off the tree
They fell on the lawn
Did they know, the cycle of renewals
Further they flew, blown away by the wind
Each spinning like a pinwheel
The paper flowers
Planted on the railings
Colours abloom

I have been inspired
Not yet, to write
Happy thoughts begin
But  don’t end in words

Shimmy and shimmer
A wedding in the family
Reasons to smile, asunder
All that brings us together

Band Bajaa Baraat, and the celebrations unfold
Rituals followed through the midnight
Vows taken around the sacrosanct fire
Rose petals and blessings showered on the newly weds

Our boy, brings home his pretty wife
Happy thoughts
And new beginnings
Words don’t justify

I had been waiting for so long
For the singer and her songs
And the day arrived for me to watch her perform live
On a Saturday night

She has been on my playlist for more than a year
Her voice so unique, every morning a joy to hear

The stars twinkled in the sky  
The stage a spectacle, alive
She walked in her glittering costume, all glam
Her troupe, by her side, electrifying

In her deep and mesmerising voice
All heart and soul, she sang
The audience entranced, danced

To the pulsating music and strobing lights
Colourful confetti,  rained down on the ground

We lounged, spellbound
As Fireworks illuminated the sky
Culminating in a crescendo of fire and sound
A night to remember, divine

A day, a week
Months on a row
Unburdened by the show
They go

Dates to keep
To pass, and sweep
The crumbs, away

In the moment, and for
The quiet, in the humdrum
Forever stays
In absolute state

Pitchers and plants  
Watering and nurturance,
Symbiotically thrive
no pitcher plants
In place

Sunshine yellow
Or perhaps
Mustard hued
The suede jacket
Like an old fading memory
Worn on the outside
Cozy and warm
Reminiscent of a place and time
Long gone
Like the jacket
Once worn
Now frayed

Mural on the wall
Tiny footprints on the lawn
Joyous, kitten sprints

I am afraid to share my thoughts
I am scared to lose them all
I am afraid to think, as that will make me want to write
I am scared to write
In anticipation of loss
Why do they, these thoughts, bother me
I know, not right

But I think, I will listen to my thoughts
As they have helped me write
And lighten my heart
Even if no one listens
Never Reads
Forgotten
Hidden from light
I know I have a place to keep them safe
In drafts
For another time

Freedom sought
Without knowing how and what it looked like and was
Every breath visibly free
Yet never owned
In the distance
Grew a voice bold
You knew
You knew
With your every breath
And chose it well
Yet lost
Freedom is sought
Never free
On a waitlist
It rides rent free

Times to reminisce
Promises deceased
A new born hope
In its wishful steps
Frolicked to future
No time to rest

Dreams to seek
Promises to keep
Wishes unfulfilled
Uncertainty is a treat

Each day unveils
The calendar’s fate
Charming or tedious
Never to know
A delight,  it can be

Unkept promises
Tug at the heartstrings
Wishes and dreams
Have no expiration dates
Timeless unbound
Like the eternal springs

*I come here and I go
Catch me if you can
Says HP…
Every now and then it keeps doing this
Out of habit, I believe

It doesn’t feel good at all
Now, who is listening, are they…
It’s like speaking into a void

Makes me anxious
It has happened in the past
No mystery, it will happen again

I come here and I go
Catch me if you can
Says HP… that’s true
I believe in it

Be a part, don’t depart
No pain no gain
Says HP…
I come here and I go
Catch me if you can
Says HP….

Yesterday’s words, discarded as chaff
Not much to imbibe, like news once read
Nothing to reflect, left

Flooding thoughts
Survived many a droughts
Lost to the mundane, caught

Like the lamppost
Which lit through the night
Lost its light to the sunshine, fraught

Peace of mind
Is seldom bought
Nevertheless
A piece of mind
Can be freely earned
Reap as you sow
or not

At the heart of the village
The leader lived
Led with integrity

Fence on a side with spikes
Where nature meets eternity
Brick walls on the other side
For security

No pretence
Sharing beliefs, disagreements griefs and bliss
The family of simple needs

Sparse the spread
The table neatly laid
With a welcoming spirit
That never fades

It was the simplicity of the house
Where hearth and home, evoked grace
Old chipping doors, unkempt outdoors
Where flowers bloomed effortlessly

What part of the life
Have I truly lived
What part of the life
Have I fairly lived
What part of the life
I truly missed
What part of the life
I wish to live twice
What part of the life
I wish never to repeat
What part of the life
Was full of vice
What part of the life
Can be erased
What part of life
Was perfect
What part of the life
Was just for rhetorics
What part of the life
Has made it worthwhile
The living and loving
That’s truly right

Each and every step
Is soaking wet
The roads to trees
Stand still

The bark of the trees
Little do they speak

Soft and coarse brown
Peeling skin

Losing limbs to the pelting rain

It is July what to expect
Traffic snarls
Red to orange
Green alerts

Overcast skies
Overflowing dams
Unbridled seas
rivers no more discreet

The gleaming copper  water ***
Joyfully dances beneath the gurgling spout
Scrubbed clean, empty its core
Aged, over the decades had some mighty falls
The dents and scratches on the outside
Over the years, no days to recall
A silvery sheen, it wears
Slaked the thirst of many a souls
A life fulfilled, brimmed and drained
A timeless inscription, the ownership date, tenderly engraved

Blue Silken slumber
The lake I see breathes deep, sleeps
The mountain protects

Dear Well-Wisher,

I hope this message finds you in good health.

We, Vaishali and Tushar Purohit from Pune, come to you with a heavy heart and tears in our eyes, pleading for your help to save our 4-year old son Rishi's life. He is undergoing treatment for neuroblastoma (rare form of cancer) at the Tata Memorial Hospital, Mumbai.

Since April, our little warrior has been bravely battling cancer that is threatening to take him away from this world. Every rupee you contribute will be the difference between life and death for our 4-year old warrior.

We would also request you to forward this message to your family and friends, which will inspire them to contribute and aid in saving an innocent life.

Here's the fundraiser link:* https://www.impactguru.com/fundraiser/help-s-o-tushar

Thanking you for your consideration and support during these trying times.🙏🏼 *

Fierce gusts
Swept away
The gentle breeze

Don’t be beguiled
The flash and light, do beckon
Beware its a snare

Velvet clouds, cumulus
Atmospheric colours, silver and Grey
Fervid, they prey

Hold your breath
Skip that beat, It’s not your song
But a raging thunderstorm

Rains call it a day
The droplets have been let down
Streams babble a song

Assignments to do
Says ‘The Moodle’
I navigate through Zoom
And doodle my dreams  
On the screen

Classroom to classroom
The dashboard croons
A melody incomprehensible
Moodle knows the notes

Meet on the wisdom page
Says ‘The Sage’
Surrender to knowledge
At your wanting door