long before the world placed you in my arms,  
you lived in me.  
i felt you in the silent ache of lonely nights,  
in the soft wish i whispered to the stars.  
i carried you in the deepest part of me,  
where love was not found but formed.  

i have seen you before,
in trembling hands that reached for love but closed into fists,  
in the doe eyes that never cried,  
‘cause tears were a door never safe to open.  

i have seen you in Ray.  
in little Molly,  
in the girl i once was.  

in that moment, i made a pinky promise:
“no child of mine,  
no child under my sky,  
will ever have to do tea parties alone.”

you will not do 200 ballet pliés to quiet your sadness.  
nor stand at the edge of love
wondering if it will stay.  

you will not be asked to trade your tears for perfect grades  
or a quiet, collected face
when all you ever needed was to be held.  

because i will hold you.  
i will teach you to dance, to loosen up, & to let go.  
and even if my hands falter, i will always take you spinning on the giant teacup rides,  
through every storm, every silence & every trembling night.  

i will be the arms that never let go of you.  
the heart that never goes numb.  
the home that stands unshaken,  
even when the world forgets to be kind to you.  

and if the world asks,
where did i find you?  
i will press a kiss to your hair, smile and say,

“this kind of love isn’t found.
but always meant.”

you were always mine.  
you were always coming home,
for the day i was born & so were you.

Thou art my creator
Not to mention, my first teacher
From you, have I learned so much
That it has made me rich
Not in terms of wealth
But in terms of character
Always, have you kept me in good health
And assuaged my doubts and fears
To the greatest extent possible
Thanks to you, do I really believe nothing is impossible!

Thou art my creator
There is so much you have to bear
In order to keep me happy
While I often get snappy
Certainly, have I not been the best son
However, rarely have you been wrong
Always, have you been there for me
Constantly coaxing and cajoling
Scolding and admonishing
And finally
Encouraging and praising!!

Thou art my creator
To me, are you extremely dear
The perfect example of unconditional love
However, at the same time
Rarely have you treated me with kid gloves
Many a time, have you taken the blame
For mistakes I have made
Nevertheless, you are the main reason
For me having a strong sense of right and wrong
You are my moral compass
And whenever there is something amiss
You point me in the right direction
Equally important, are your words of caution!!

Thou art my creator
Not just a mother
But also a friend for life
And my strongest companion in times of strife
With me, have you sometimes been patient to the extreme
You are the beam
Of light that surrounds me from all sides
And ensures I never fade
Often, have you been a mixture of strict and lenient
Sometimes, downright blunt
But you can also be exceedingly sweet
All in all, as a parent
Quite hard are you, to beat!!

Thou art my creator
And quite a colourful character
You are the most precious person
In my entire life
From you, have I learned the most important lessons
Thanks to you, have I been able to ride the rough
And ultimately emerge successful
Finally, I love you above one and all
May God bless you
With loads of love, happiness and peace!!

for all I know, she is a woman.
her beauty might leave you speechless
she is special, not the only one of her species,
and yet, she is uniqueness.

the wind whistles through her hair,
as she walks in elegance,
but it’s nothing like arrogance.

she embodies love and protection,
her heart is strong and golden.
and she is a lover of perfection.

she still remembers
the chances she didn’t take.
the wounds, the heart aches
and the days without breaks.

she has fallen many times,
but sure knows how to arise.
her strength has never let her down
and she still carries her crown.

for all I know,
she is a queen without king.
she always knew how to fight
and how to spread out her wings.

she protects her infants
even from a distance.
her love is persistent,
she is brave and resistent.

for all I know,
her heart is in the right place,
it carries compassion and grace.
and she will always make sure,
that I am safe.

for all I know, she must be a mother.
and gracefully I smiled,
when I realised,
that I am her child.

- gio

There are quite a few people in this world
Who are special to me
In their own ways
But none, more than my parents
Especially my mother
Seeing as it was her
Who brought me to the world
In the first place
And raised me
With so much love and care
That I feel I am one of the luckiest sons
However, at the same time
Amma has ensured
That I am not spoilt or pampered
As often happens with many rich kids
On the other hand
She has always kept me grounded
Whenever I've gotten too ahead of myself
So, it is thanks to Amma
That I am able to maintain humility
In the face of success
Also, whenever my confidence has taken a beating
Especially at work
Amma has always been at the ready
With a few words of encouragement
And has never failed to remind me
That I've been in such situations earlier
And managed to turn things around
Amma is not only a wonderful parent
But also a great friend, mentor and counsellor
Rolled into one
I can go on and on about her
But I think that's all for today

I see in her eyes a reflection of my life, our life intertwined.

We are so much a part of each other...

Please don't feel the pain I felt...
I feel.

We are mirrors facing each other, the depth is immeasurable.

Which way to turn? If one shatters, does the other shatter too?

I will face you with strength so that my reflection will give you the power to be wise, aware, and beautiful.  Your spirit will be full of love and hope - and through your reflection back at me...

I will healed.

Here we are
Like always
Dog yelping
in the other room


I try to explain to you
My pain is like yours
Just fragmented
Amongst your own ghost

Don’t you see it?

The bruises of whiskey
The long sighs of relief
When you come home clean


Clean


Clean

Isn’t that a funny word?


I wait so long to hear it.
And then you whisper -
The essence of it.
It floats within me
For a fragment of time
Even if
I admit
It’s now on its’ ninth life,

Each time I beg
That your life
Still has truth

And then it goes out




The meaning of it all
And you laugh
Because isn’t joy
Just the ignorance of pain?


I’m crying
There’s tears in the living room now
And on the sofa where you spoke your first sound


I’m trying
To contain the little of my remains
But how do you die when you’re still living?


You look at me now
Those same eyes I saw
When you were four


Four and trying to show me
How your spaceship made of sand
Will take us far -
Take us to the moon
Take us there
And back

I’m standing in your room
And I’m trying
To figure out how I got us here
To figure out how to get us back
Do bottle tops shimmer like sand?

Indeed, it is lifeless
But it gives life to her hopes.
It is a witness;
Witness of her all time pains.
It is her friend whom
She shares her thoughts with.
She looks into a distance
Upto the place her eyes can see,
Tears flow down vigourously.
Yet, hope remains deep down the heart.
It shines;
Along with it shine her faiths,
Her faiths would have died a long ago
If it did not exist.
She gazes into its light,
It says to her,"your wait is not wasted."
She strengthens...
She grows stronger with the words.
When everything faded away,
When darkness covered the dawn of life,
When there was shadow all over,
It had helped her fight;
Fight with the pessimism of life.
To the rest of the world,
It was just a piece of mud.
But to her,
It was 'THE DIYO'
Her courage, her belief and her faith
Whose never ending light
Would provide her
A reason to fight and survive.