Ecphrasis

How does it feel to kiss through a veil?
Where we can’t see each other,
and nothing is revealed.

Like a shroud we wear it, hidden
from the rest of our world

Yet a closeness I can sense
as our kiss unfolds.

How I would love to see your eyes
and caress your skin.

Yet the passion of your kiss
I can feel within.

I don’t know who you are
or what is it that you do?

But you will always remain
my ‘veiled’ kissing stranger,
Till we bid each other adieu.

Written for a fortnightly theme on 'Star crossed lovers' for Shakespeare & Co writers network on Ryze

"Modern Sanyasi"

Sporting funky jewellery, I speak with a drawl,
I’m more than just my saffron ‘dhoti’ and shawl.

Stone studded rings adorn my hands,
Don’t doubt it; I can do a mean head-stand.

I have manicured nails and grey dreadlocks,
Love marigold garlands and my ‘holy pot’.

Do take note of the mobile I tote,
If my clients didn’t call me, I would be broke.

I have an old companion, who keeps me sound,
If not for my B&H, I would have gone underground.

I’m setting out for the city, have a long journey ahead,
I need some retail therapy and to earn my bread.

Don’t be fooled by what’s written about me
I am a mere, modern-day ‘sanyasi’, you see!


Written for a "Theme exercise" for S & Co

My Quest

Not smooth or rounded
or free of glitches,
At times a pot-holed journey
replete with hits and misses.

A relentless search
for nudges and signs,
That could lead and guide me
towards this quest of mine.

Difficult to express,
words may not suffice,
A hesitation to share,
even if it’s for a price.

It seems to shift and change
like the grains of sand,
Perhaps to do with me
and the ways of my mind.

As of now my quest
seems simple and clear;
To live in truth and faith
and be without fear.

To be more of what I am
with each passing day,
And to live life to its fullest
come what may.

As part of the Theme exercise for Shakespeare and Company Network of Writers(Ryze)

Sonnet-Untitled

Carve me; Shape me as you will,
sculpt me, mould me as you wish.
Chipped edges to smoothen and fill,
with your artists brush, its gentle swish.

Challenge me to lessons, yet to learn,
nudge me on towards the end.
Emotions to delve in, beliefs to burn,
a cathartic journey with many a bend.

Light my shadows, dissolve my fears,
kiss my wounds and hold me tight.
A gentle touch to remind me you are near,
to build my strength and face this fight.

Not a fight, this, just an ordinary day
at life’s school, where I learn to make my way.

My 1st attempt at a sonnet.

Contemplation

In the marble orchard
of stark stillness
we remain separated in
time.

You bask in the sun
while I grieve in
the chill of the
shade.




Written for an exercise on S & Co(Ryze)



Photo Courtesy:Ashish Gorde

Christina's World by Andrew Wyeth

Was she lost
or just transported
to another world?

Of lush grass in hues of
emerald and rust.
Of sunlight splaying
from light blue skies.
Of a distant home
Beckoning in its stillness.



Enveloped in solitude
and a strange sense of quiet,
she gazed with longing,
a quiet urgency
into the expanse
ahead.

The indescribable longing
this yearning to reach out
to be cradled,nurtured
cosseted in warmth and love
so palpable yet so subtle
in the tremble of her body

She tried to move
but could not..
She tried to cross the
barriers of her helplessness and anguish…..
But she remained frozen in that
moment forever.

Gazing at her home,
So distant in its allure
So inviting in its warmth
Yet far beyond her reach.


This was written for a Writing Exercise for a Writers Board,one of my few attempts!

June 2005