After the rain.....

Waking up after the rain

to a glorious, wonderful day

stretching and smiling to itself…

with patches of sunshine

between darker, cooler shadows

A newly washed sky

hung out to dry

glowing a brilliant blue…

White clouds…like curtains

billowing in the breeze

The leaves shining

clean and sparkling green…

glowing with a radiance

giving a luminous tinge

to the surroundings….

The sun beaming down

breaking into sparkles

shining in every puddle

reflecting rainbows

dazzling the eyes

Raindrops swinging on

electric and telephone wires

glittering like jewels…

basking in the sun

reluctant to let go….

A day full of magic,

hope and possibilities

A chance to celebrate

the beauty around

and life in all its glory….

Haiku

Autumn afternoon....

Dried leaves floating around

....Like butterflies....

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ALONE

We are born alone

And we die

Alone….

We make our choices

And shape our future

Alone…

We take decisions

And make up our mind

Alone….

We face challenges

And fight our battles

Alone…..

We seize our chances

And follow our heart

Alone…..

We make mistakes

And learn from them

Alone….

We accept life

And come to terms with it

Alone…

We let go of expectations

And pursue our dreams

Alone….

We make compromises

And find our happiness

Alone…

We may not be lonely

But we are always

Alone….

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IT’S A DOG’S LIFE…..

 This little bundle became a part of our lives eight years ago.....

Alfie Kurup, love and cherish you....

Wagging his tail joyfully

He greets me at the doorstep

with undisguised pleasure

Making me feel so welcome...

At least there was someone

Genuinely pleased to see me

And not ashamed to show it….

Yet all he wants is…….

A friendly pat

A kindly hug

And a loving look…….

All so easy to give

Yet so rarely given…….

His little heart overflowing

With unconditional love...

His soft, melting eyes

Speaking innumerable languages

His silent acceptance of things

Inspite of changes and turmoils…….

Tied up at intervals

According to our whims

Waiting to be taken out

Whenever we have time

His freedom restricted

To suit our fancies……..

Does he miss his family?

Does he feel homesick?

Does he know of God?

Does he have a religion?

Does he wonder at the world?

Does he think of Death?

Does he have dreams of his own?

Or does he just sit and watch

Life passing by in front of him………

Taking each day as it comes………?

Moving out

As I move out of your life

Into my own….all that remains

A rumpled bedcover….

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The Eternal Question

Life's full of questions

As we ponder its meaning..

and purpose....

We go through the motions

of living...or what we consider

to be living....

with a beginning and

a definite end...

the presence of breath

and the absence of it...

being the deciding factor

Is that all life is about?

the journey from birth to death

as if all that happened 
in between.... is not real.......

Is there a cosmic plan?

Do we play our parts

pulled as puppets on strings?

or is it just a dream?

The happiness that we feel...
the heartaches we go through....
the search for love....
the need to belong....
Do they remain after we move on
or do they also end with us?
Do we leave behind nothing
but memories......

Unanswered eternal questions.....

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Still Waiting

I remember those summer evenings after school

Dashing into the house to change

And dashing out again to play

The basketball court beckoned to us……..

A place to meet…to play…

To be part of a team….to grow…

To win….to lose….to learn…

To be there for each other…..

      The thump of energetic feet

Keeping pace with the dribbling ball

Playing in the spirit of the game

The constant challenge to net the ball

The gleeful laughter, the disappointed sighs

The failures, the euphoric highs

The battles won and lost, the lessons learnt…….

More valuable than school

Today it stands silent and alone….

Waiting for children who never come

Looking at the sky and bemoaning

The early loss of childhood…..

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Memories

Memories…….like uninvited guests

Suddenly crashing through

The routine of daily life

Memories……like long lost friends

Dropping in unexpectedly

Reviving forgotten feelings

Memories…….like spoilt children

Jostling each other

And demanding attention

Memories…….like stray dogs

Wandering here and there

Without any destination

Memories…….like sneaking thieves

Stealing peace of mind

Unmindful of causing distress

Memories…….like a sticky morass

Clinging to every thought

Simply refusing to let go

Memories……..like the falling rain

Gently soothing and drenching

Washing away all guilt and regret

Memories…….like a package

Wrapped around life

And tied up with special moments

Memories…..like an irritating family

Hard to live with

Harder to live without ……

Haiku

summer afternoon

a drop of memory

on my eyelashes

evening shadows

lonely together

you and me

looking back into
the darkness of yesterday 
memories in bloom

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Married Life

A relationship changing equations

like shifting sand dunes, slow….subtle..

Starting with dreams….passion..

becoming a compromise

when children come along..

the bonds become ties, ties become chains,

tying two people…into a life sentence…

The focus shifts, as children become

the lifeline to hold on to..

until they go their different ways…

duties and obligations take over

love, understanding and compatibility…

what we want to do, gets suppressed

by what we ought to do…

We continue living, leading parallel lives

trying to fill the emptiness in our spaces

with friends, work and various interests…

freedom becomes loneliness…

independence becomes indifference…

spaces become distances..

too great to be bridged…

So it goes on….a charade..

spontaneity lost in silence…

taking each other for granted

staying together for appearances…

and for others..a farce with

forced caring, reluctant sharing…

not reason enough to break free…

Yet needing each other

on some basic, subconscious plane

having no more desires…no more

expectations..just used to each other

comfortable in our differences

content to be with someone who

knows us at our best….and our worst…