The Way You Once Were (For Dad)

I remember you the way you used to be...
Your tall frame shielding me from the rain,
Your strong arms embracing me protecting me from the cold wind,
Your deep voice retelling stories of 'Norman Conquest' and 'The Baron',
Your laughing eyes watching me try to resolve my blunders,
Stealing out to eat vadas and icecream together,
Evening walks, talking about trivial things that seemed so important to me then...
I could talk to you about anything...boys, books, puberty,
And your lap was my favourite seat even after age caught up with me...
Your love so pure and deep
Your father's heart -
A silent comfort
knowing even the hidden, uncofessed part of me,
Willing to forgive,
And wipe my tears away...

But now the days grow dark...
The orange blossoms fade in mid bloom,
And the sun shines only dimly,
Almost half-heartedly
Through the mist of sorrow enshrouding us.
And my heart bleeds to see you
Lying there,
A skeleton of yor former self...
Your tearless eyes heavy with sleep,
Your mind wandering through memories of the past,
Unprotected from the rain,
Vulnerable to the cold wind;
My arms insufficient comfort
My strength inadequate to ease your pain

You taught me about faith...
- That it was believeing even in the midst of suffering...
And I see the familiar flame in your sleep rimmed eyes
Warring against my hopelessness, my faithlessness,
And my soul cries out to its Creator, to restore you to the way you once were...

Oh to be born a boy!

Oh to be born a boy!
No hair to braid and plait

Just pant and shirt and off...

And get to stay out late!

No one to stare and say
"Dear mind just how you sit!"

One leg up in the air

Another in the pit!

No one to chide when we
Get all wet in the rain

For us its "Hurry in"

For them its "Watch them play"

No outfit matching fits

No monthly period blues

And when we're old enough

To hear our 'I love Yous'

No one to snatch the phone away

And yell all Hitler like

And grab the secret notes

And steal our heart's best spikes!

No one to cheek and curse
In case a skirt's too high...

3 suits is quite enough

Forget the wash and dry!

As kids we're told just why,

As teens we're told just when,

And still they just go on..

In turning wives to hens!

Just once to feel all free...

To run through life all high...
Climb trees, catch toads, spill drink,

And bid your blush goodbye!

Oh to be born a boy!

The fact that seals it all...
You have your cake and eat it too!

Don't say it isn't fun!

Like a River...

Life is like a river
And we move as it flows...
Bending with the currents,
Rippling over the paths it cuts;
Stealing the colour of the sky,
And the glory of the sun,
In its liquid mirror.

Twisting and turning it flows...
Reaching onwards,
Grazing the soil beneath it
With glassy fingers;
Kissing the breeze that blows
Freely above it;

Always moving, always coursing
Around the next bend,
Across new banks,
Tasting the freshness of tomorrow...
Charting its own course
Towards the embracing ocean
To join its proud waves.

Yet always,
it carries in each drop....
memories
of the beauty it has lived,
and the times it has seen,
and the tears it has left
along its way.

All The Morning Showed Me...

I watched the first faint streaks of dawn
Flit against the sky.
I marked the birds in plume prepare
To praise the late sunrise...

The stars put on their veils and drew
Into their hiding places,
And children on their way to school
were wiping sleepy faces.

The meadows lay there damp with dew
Each shiny drop, the morning knew -
Waiting for the sun's first kiss...
To turn the glazing into mist.

I watched the trees dance to a tune
That only they could hear...
The rain had come and filled the ruts
and puddles with its tears...

And then the sun rode high and shed
its light upon the scene,
The air was thick with golden dust -
It looked just like a dream!

But people on their way to work
Their heads turned down, their faces stark,
had closed their eyes to all the goodThe morning showed me where I stood.

Home (For a Homesick Friend)

Where the leaves are bent with fat drops of rain,
Where speckled butterflies kiss the air,
Where the clouds and mist dance atop the trees...
- My heart is there...

Where the turquoise pond is with lilies filled,
Where the river cuts out grassy stairs,
Where the auburn hay cradles the milking calf,
- My heart is there...

The old dog bounds across the hills,
And a parrot's call shrills right through the air,
The cottage smoke, and mother's smile...
- My heart is there...

The emerald green of velvet grass,
The old arms labouring through the day,
The coffee steaming - dark as night...
- My heart is there...

The old worn tree where squirrels rest,
The yesterdays of childhood play,
The tire swing that now lays still...
- My heart is there...

Where the careworn smiles welcome me back home,
Where the eaves hang ripe with blossoms rare,
Where the rooster's crow breaks the noiseless dawn,
- My heart is there...

I walk through days, and labour much,
And take of all the world that's fair,
But when I think of home I know...My heart is there...

Passing By

Some people pass on through our lives

Without a backward glance...

A smile, a wave, a soft hello,

And then a bye,.. by chance...

Some people brand our hearts with fire,

And burn us through the bone..

Their whirlwind ways and sad goodbyes

Will leave us so alone!

But some dear friends do kindly leave

Soft imprints on our hearts -

And stake a claim of love within

Than never will depart...

Corporate Monkeys Nodding to the Beat

Aren't we all just corporate monkeys nodding to the beat of our machines?!!!

We need alarm clocks to tell us when to get up, answering machines to take our calls, calculators to add up the grocery bills, and cell phones that can sing. A beep here and a beep there.......supermarket bar code reader – beep, mall security check - beep kitchen smoke detector – beep, electric kettle (tea's ready!) – beep, microwaved dinner – beep, sms alert - beep, car alarm - beep, and lets not forget the office biometrics reader - beep beep beep beep beep beep beep!!!!! It feels like we're in a 'Wile E Coyote and the Road Runner' movie for crying out loud!

Then there's the 'ding' of the elevator, the blare of car back-up melodies, the twang of the pop-up toaster, and the annoying ring of the doorbell when you're in the shower. What about the infuriating busy signal IVR messages on your cell phone? And don't get me started on the dumb railway announcements that no one understands.

And when we're not listening to the rest of it, we're usually walking around with our ear phones on at the mercy of FM or the latest downloaded chart buster.

Haven't our lives turned into an electronic cacophony with a 24/7 accompanying metro orchestra? We hardly take time to hear the birds tweet anymore! Oh wait, there's a couple of them tweeting now....! No wait, that's my ring tone!