Ride On!!!

Ride On!! 

For the long journey, I rode on...
For the small I always tarried...
And it was the home which I longed for...
For the houses were always storied...

Ride on! I said...
Ride on! They said!
What if the sun goes down and the moon never comes,
The rain splash heavy or the chills block the ear drums,

The spirit of the rider backs the black and outshines the silver,
For each turn brings the De-gama and wroughts the gulliver.
Nothing is in vain when you are tripping on the edge of knife,
This turn it is life and on the other it brings the eternal wife.

Ride on! The passing trees whispered!
Ride on! The bumps and the breakers gestured!

There are no rules, though you must create them,
Never look back, welcome those who left and came,
Truth and dare are two brothers, who come in pair,
Never veneer off the road, there’s nothing to despair.

Ride on! The aching heels commanded!
Ride on! The numb hands demanded!!

There will be journeys where the heart will burn and spirits deflate,
Just thump the engine and let the wheels gyrate...

Ride On!!!

Ah! The morning!!!

Ah! The morning!!!

First ray twinkled through the crevices,

My eyes welcomed the warmth,sleeping tired were my devices,.

Marigolds turned heads,birds chirped up the morning,

Wells sparkled the cold water ,winds whipped the yawning.

Hills rolled till the eyes could see,

Brooms of heaven,swept the land & tree.

Rays streaked while the clouds played hide and seek,

I felt blessed,I felt weak,felt overawed and meek.

For I snared beauty,I sensed the grand design,

Neither far was the sun to touch,neither to dive deep was the blue ravine.

What we learn or own today is not cared for in heavens,

Glory will be given,all to whether beggars or mavens.

Joy was never forever to see,the sun will set one day,
Revel,revel or wait for hours for the new ray.

Morphed Insanity....

Morphed Insanity....

The eyes blank! a Pitless well staring at the afar light.No longing.Darkness meant nothing.Red spots streaking the lenght of the eyeballs as if everytime they shed tears,a thunderbolt came down,daring them! mocking them!!
No definition,no explaination!To eke out one,it haunts the burdened soul.Justice is now 'Just '-' Ice' on the eternal savage wounds.Leave it!Don`t talk about it.No vivid images as they once came,only flashes!flashes flying too fast to hurt.It might have been another lifetime,another sufferring,only for there was no pain.
Funny!Pain you escape,pain you detest,but little and almost inadvertantly you realize that only choice is to embrace it.More of a poison that needs willful drinking to be cured.My itch is now gone.Vanished!!
To think is to waste.Cease! Where are the boundaries,I feel none.The scope is suddenly on a huge canvass albeit without expectations.Dreams are such a reality now,they hardly stand out and surprise.But you think about me as a pitiful,woebegone,devoid of the pleasures that you set store your life by.I don`t think about you.Neither about anything.I don`t think.
Blank! Cosmic darkness.Just as it all started.With intermittent flashes ofcourse.Time waits,seconds hold their breath.Numbness find a new altar as it starts to rain.Drip!Drop!-Drip!Drop!The cresendo go from the chaos to being subtle and discernable.
Brain does register something,the heart has become illiterate.A speck of light,a clasp of thunder.God`s final act of opera.
The pores all stream open.The elements devour me;they made me, they had me.Fitting! I go cageless.
From one freedom to another.Eyes flicker,shadow does a final dance,muscles and veins cramp in delight.The 'ON' switch at last accepts the changing winds.
"As if..."

Promise...

Promise...

I wonder! The time was surely early,

I was sulking, getting all the more surly,

Morose! I gave up on the work,

Little did I knew, the fat angel was on the lurk.

When I first met you, I knew!

When we saw last, I didn`t.

The boil had a pretty palpable stew!

Added that spice much uncalled for! Wish I hadn`t.

Met you and I knew myself!! A mirror!!

The echoes of heart I heard in your eyes,

Thought about you and I remembered myself!!A cellar!!

Promises I made, in keeping your trust grew in size.

No tethers! We agreed! But strings of heart knot alot,

Smiles and tears, wonder why they are the same,

Pining! Each day was full of joy! But your presence I sought & sought,

My pen and heart aren`t one, but both then why scribble your name.

Moon shone through your tangled tassels, sigh!

Wordless walks said a lot to you and me,

Sun danced in your eyes, cared not to wake ere morning nigh!

Locked fingers made all the questions free.

Discovering shades of love, we fought and laughed together,

Lest it all became too mundanely lovely,

Learning new definitions of love, our feet parted rather,

To part only simmers the love beneath, we learned slowly-slowly.

Joy knew no bounds when your world was all but me,

Back 2 back, timeless we sat in eternity,

Flowers bloomed early, the stars were for ours to see,

Quite separate bodies still were, though souls stood firmly in unity.

The springs made sweet noise, delightful were the paths we treaded unknown,

In love everything is bright, in mist and dark, our hearts beamed and shone,

Guide me!! For my heart is astray!!

Take my hand!! For thorned roses are in the way.

Your beauty is now sinking in, like a good old wine,

I return to our first meeting, made it a holy shrine,

For union of hearts is an event not commonplace in time,

It dwarfs the miracles of god, belittles the verse and the rhyme.

Winged angels came and went; we fall in love all over again,

New is the chill of the winters; fresh are the drops of this rain,

You whispered something & I understood why,

'If only I met you earlier’, said you and began to cry.

Travails of love had to come and they indeed came to pass,

Pain and anguish engulfed you; my sanity also went for a toss,

Albeit that was the last when love hurted us,

For the pain then became a habit, wholesome was the status thus.

Picked! Nibbled! The beaks of the birds at the forlorn tree,

But fruits have to wait for the spring, nature has its way, you see!

Arms were not wide enough; eyes were still not full to the brim,

They savored the return and will, till we again depart to be separate and to be grim.

At last the meaning of love dawned and it mocked!

Ebbs and tides are a part; boat of love loves to be rocked,

On the perch of emotions, it stands supreme though,

Oii!! I thought I had it, love was mine, say no more, whoosh and lo!

 

The GOAT herder Syndrome

The GOAT herder Syndrome

I am not trying to answer who is GOAT or who isn`t. (Last time I checked the four legged creature identified me and vice-versa, and to be honest beats me this moniker of GOAT, couldn`t we could have had a more cool BOA (best of all), at least the snake kills the goat and doesn`t eat  grass!)Neither I`ll be predicting the rise of the monster or the fall of the rooster from the birch top. No soothsayings,no swansongs or tale of a rising not-so-red phoenix(read Murray!!).No!No,not at all.

What these points to ponder do when they play tennis between your logic and fantasy while you’re already addled brain playing the immovable and all absorbing net in between? They play with your balls!!Well they lob your thoughts, slice your feelings and moon ball your patience. So no nothings of this sort for me. No praise for federer,no hatemails for djoker,no apparel etiquette tips for nadal(I won`t butt in, I promise!),no fairytale promises to the British tennis fans either.(they also sense they need someone else!)

So what we are talking about here? The thing is-I have just started to learn tennis. Lawn tennis to be precise in vocabulary and cement-backyard-uneven bounce- tennis to be accurate in description. Don`t be fooled though, I am not one of those who doesn`t know who lleyton hewitt was {is? was? does it matter?}or one of those who believe there are only four tournaments in a year,because thats what their cable operator tells them. Serious as I am about tennis, I happen to have a keen eye for the sport and of course women`s tennis. As I was saying about me learning to put the ball in the right place rather than hit out of the ground, I suddenly have grew wary of critics and naysayers. Even to the extent this fear of opinionated men (women included, I am not a sexist!) has grown inside me recently that I watch the matches in mute.(My apologies to sharapova,nadal,and djokovic for not heeding to their calls or yells or grunts..!)

Expert or no expert, I believe I have a flair for the game. My flair list includes an expensive pair of shoes, officious looking wristwatch & athletic wristbands and headbands. Well racquets and balls are provided for by the academy where I go to play, so yes I am in gear.

To me the trivial matter of landing the ball in the other court isn`t as big as being able to say “the ball is in my court now”. So mostly you see I am at a receiving end. And I am loving it.Federer it seems can wait for his 17th, I can`t wait for even the morning. (afternoon`s too arduous to play, no?)Of course seeing my dedication you might have guesses my bright future. I keep telling my hitting partners (no double entrendes here!!) to avoid gloating about my obvious talents but puff!! you know how these hero-worshippers are. A topic of excited gossip and a style to copy, now that`s what I am being reduced to in the tennis circles.

                   Without sounding overtly narcissistic or resisting the urge to showcase the ever so mild shenanigan, I must confess that I could no longer keep the secret forever-Roger Federer copied and continues to copy me(Sorry roger!! check your inbox, might have an apology mail there for disclosing this.).Couldn`t hide it any longer you see, the kids had started asking nasty questions, those little buggers.I mean let`s confess this once in for all, how come someone just burst on the scene with all the shots in the book ( I forgot to teach him the high backhand of a spinning ball, took him years!).I roamed in the wilderness while he bossed the game as if the righteous owner of the prairie has arrived.Well,bah! I don`t even want the adulation, I am contend enough knowing that the protégé is doing well, not perched at top exactly but hey I mean does it really matter, now look at me, I might condescend to accept my greatness, but beneath me that, beneath me! As they say" We didn`t start the fire, I did."

                         Hmmm,sorry I didn`t get the joke,oh uh djok is it? that’s the new spelling. So what would you call yourself then? Oh Djoker is it? Did you had your supper?Oh Glutton free, my my, I am impressed. Original idea perhaps? Let me see, you aren`t from Serbia? No? You are not in the business of impressionism? No? Good good!! No let me see...Nolet me see....No-le tme see...No-le...Oh...Nole!!!

A 70-6 record? 3 grand slams? 5 masters? 12 mn$ prize money? No 1? Not impressed???

Look at my record...

A perfect record of 200-0, 4 grand slams, 9 masters, 3 local tourneys...no prize money...I don`t need a number with me....

Of course broadcasters haven`t really started paying those who watch. But I am hopeful to be the forerunner. And 12  mn$ a year and glutton free?? Are you kidding me? (Sheepishly sniggering!!), give me a million and I can donate the entire glutton the world needs.

In hindsight 2011 was indeed a bad year for me. Not that I am fed-up fan of Nadal and almost cried with him at the flushing meadows, (6 in a row in a year? ouch!!)But just because my racquet caught rust and fungus too often.Ah! the perils of over exerting your talents and apparatus.Ofcourse I never lost my passion for the game. I got my bagels, my sticks, I turn on the TV set or youtube.Being on the same page as your coach surely helps. I was on page 24 and so was he. Sports section!!And talking of reading and understanding, I now seriously wish I knew more of Spanish.

Vamos!! I first thought was an expression for exaltation. But anxiety, defeat and fear now need not go elsewhere for expression. But of course it means “come on”. Let’s have a look...

Exaltation--Comme onnn...!!!! Vaamos!!!

Fear--Oh no! Come on now.. vamos?

Anxiety--come on! its over!!...vammos....

But that was last year. When nadal won some matches. This year, he chatted more,vamosed less,and won even lesser. Notwithstanding the greatest clay court player tag, he jumped too high in aus & was ferreted in, brought a depleted garrison yet won over Roland garros,ate too many berries in london,and grimaced in new york.The world tour finals in London a burden on his tired frame,Nadal better be joking, or Djoking or choking?

On a tangential note, (I just remembered it!!)Since the time I`ve started writing this Nadal would have served twice,federer 12 times,and novak would still be counting his ball bounces(Oh no! I missed it!! All the way to the lucky no again!)& Murray would have developed another niggle. Watching Federer play not only reminds me of a certain myself but also someone who has found a new set of teeth.(Where are they?Oh they are there! Now I can chew!! (honey, bring the bacon now, please,will you..)

Federer has long since transformed himself from a potent tiger(glutton free anyone?) to a burly elephant with huge tusks(16 inches and not growing!) but eats with wizened molars inside.Wins,wins,wins and then gets bored of it,(let’s play with them for sometime) oh no! I Lost!!!

Someone is too relaxed(Federer),someone is too glutton free to keep losing(djoker),someone is too lost to control passion(Nadal),and someone is too out of contention to talk about(Murray).All others(Tsonga,Berdych) are too forgotten to not to mention.Atleast the future of tennis is in safe hands.

Me!!

(it’s too late, not going today to play...)

A Worm Inside....

A Worm Inside....

Stomach squirms at the sight,
Smell splits sides all tight,
I crave for that foody ride,
Afterall,there`s a worm inside!

The itch of reading now not bearable,
Thought patience is there in every parable,
I chose to turn the page side,
definitely,a worm inside!!

Wasting time joyfully always,
Not heeding to what the wise`o`old says,
I loiter the seconds far and wide,
Not my mistake,look!a worm inside.

Teasing,cajoling those around,
'Fun & me',doesn`t that makes a healthy sound,
I cry alone though,my guilt by my side,
Cribbing nigh and night,blame the worm inside.

Praying,keeping faith in lord,
My principles don`t die by the sword,
Rules of the heaven I keep & abide,
In this to hell with the worm inside.

Aao,Ek Diya Jalayein....

                                                      


       



आओ,एक दिया जलाएं ....

अपने मन के अंधकार में आओ हम आज सेंध  लगाएं ,
प्रफुल्लित हो जाए जग सारा ,आओ ,एक दिया जलाएं .

रोशनी का वो पुंज जो बाट जोह रहा तेरे प्रण की ,
तमस की वो निशा जो राह देखती सवेरे की,जीवन की ,
आज आओ हम कर्म की वो दियासलाई लाएं ,
छोटा ही सही,पर आओ आज पुण्य का एक नया दिया जलाएं .

बहुतेरे थके है,बहुतेरे रुके है,पर तू न थमना ,
कुछ दिए जल चुके,कुछ बुझ गए,पर तू न मचलना,
उस जीवन की लौ के लिए आओ थोड़ा और तेल लाएं,
जो न जला सके,उनकी ही खातिर आओ आज एक और दिया जलाएं.

जिनके माथे पर बल है अनेक,जिनके चेहरे पर चिंताओं का है सदा बसेरा,
जिन्होंने न जाना मतलब ख़ुशी का,न जाने वो क्या होता है सवेरा,
उनके जीवन की तपन को आओ आज निर्मल बन पी जाएँ,
अपनी खुशियों की फुलझड़ियों से आज उनके भी जीवन में आनंद का वो पहला द्वीप जलाएं .

डालो नकेल उस दुर्भाग्य में जो निर्भीक विचरण कर रहा तेरे मन अभ्यारण में,
खोलो द्वार आज तुम सब सारे,स्वप्न और प्रज्वलित करो अपने और दूज नयन में ,
खुशियों के घोड़े दौडाओं,अपनी कल्पनाओं को नवीन पंख लगाओ,
आज आओ दुर्बलता के अंधड़ से न घबराएं,फिर उम्मीद का वो नव -द्वीप जलाएं.

मिटटी का ही है वो दिया जो रोशनी देता जग भर,
कर्म का ही है वो सिला जो उत्सव बने जीवन भर,
महत्व इनका समझे आज,बोध ज्ञानी हो जाएँ,
छोड़ पुराने द्वेष और रंज,आओ मानवता का दिया जलाएं.

कठिनाईयों को बल न दे,दुर्जन को दे ललकार,
समय की चाल को समझ,न कर पराजय को स्वीकार,
अपने बालहठ को आओ जीवन रोपण में लगाएं,
जान सेवा और मन सेवा करें,आओ मन में दया का वो एक तो चिराग लगाएं.

सम्बल कर आज उन्हें  जो है तेरे साथ,
उज्जवल कर उन सभी को जो सुन रहे तुझ को आज,
अपने चहुँ ओर दीपों की मालाओं का एक तेज लगाएं,
आओ हम तुम हाथ बढाकर इस जग का अंधकार मिटायें ...

आओ,एक दिया जलाएं....