curiosity, concern, compassion and collaboration
do not call me back
if you can not understand
why some reeds grow on sand dunes
why do they hold so strong in shifting sands
why do we need to face the fire in summer when
reeds and grass blades embrace their kind so intimately
do not call me back
if the ash of burnt grasses
blackens your feet
and you can not put them again on the stones
you washed with your tears
hold me in your arms O!the benign tree
do not squeeze all the space
by letting nests of ants
enamour you of their intimacy
the breeze may make a few dried leaves fall
but the shade of the rest
will provide succour
when barks will dry up
when the wheels turn
and the time leaves shadows behind
do we walk on the trails so formed to dig deep
with in the margins of the minds
that seek
solace under the imprints on the shifting sands
some to known ends and some to unknown ones
friends have started looking back
clouds do not bear the burden too long
they rain
but then
i have just seen long stretches of parched lands
why do women paint the walls
so beautifully
so that one stops,
stays and be
still
or just pause, but not persist
if one will
nov 04
why do good people suffer
why do roads have turns
particularly the oens which lead to
a church or a temple
why do clouds drain when they
become heavy with their past
why do birds forget their way
why do lights hold sway
i do not know,
but i do know that
friends are no more what they used to be
they are kind and considerate
and therefor, do not look back,
knowing that i can not defy their call
koi subaha ab aisi to nahin hogi
jab phoolo ko thand lagegi
aur bhnwaron ko dar
lekion mainey ab taya kiya hai
kisee bhi haal mein
subah shankh bajunga
saari ki saari cheelon ko bulauga
merei tukdo tukdo mein batin hui jindagi
ab prem se unko khilaunga
ponds will dry up soon
every year, they dry when we need water,
but then we are going to desilt them
deepen them
and build clay houses
but will you let me take the silt away
or ask me to grow flowers on the banks of pond
to be offered to the deity of the pond
who seems to have turned his face away