The Yes Day

Yes, there are so many days
When the world celebrates.
Be it a festival or a relationship,
There’s a day dedicated to it.

Yes, I, too, want to create
A day that we all can celebrate.
A day on which we all agree
To say a “yes” to everything.

Yes, a “yes” day is needed
For all the people to see –
A “yes” brings opportunities.
It welcomes all possibilities.

Yes, I accept myself –
My strengths and weaknesses,
My past and my present,
And every fleeting moment.

Yes, I accept all I have,
And, also, all that I lack –
My blessings and my wishes
And everything that’s unfulfilled.

Yes, I accept all my days
Of happiness and sadness –
Days when I won and also lost
And the ones that bore a cost.

Yes, I accept the people I met –
Those that stayed; those that left.
With some, I laughed and shared;
Some left me broken and in tears.

Yes, today I celebrate
Everything that gave me shape –
They made me what I am today;
To them, a “thanks” is what I say.

Yes, a “yes” day would be great
If everyone celebrated it every day.
The world would be a happy place
As peace, in every home, would grace.

The Everyday Superwoman…Forever

The world may stir with the light of the sun.
I couldn’t care less, for her voice wakes me up at dawn.

The water in rivers may cleanse our souls.
I couldn’t care less, for every day, she gives me clean clothes.

The trees may work hard to yield fruit.
I couldn’t care less, for when I feel hungry, she cooks food.

The sky may be dark, stormy, and scary.
I couldn’t care less, for I sleep listening to her lullabies.

The breeze that blows may be life-giving.
I couldn’t care less, for she taught me the skills for the living.

The mountain may be rocky and tall.
I couldn’t care less, for she gave me the strength to rise after each fall.

The diamond may have a bright glow.
I couldn’t care less, for she makes me feel more valued and loved.

No, she doesn’t mean the sun, river, tree, sky, breeze, mountain, or diamond to me.

For the sun sets, the river dries up,
The tree withers, the sky darkens,
The breeze stalls, the mountain falls,
And, the diamond also turns to dust.

But yes, she’s my mother, a superwoman everyday…forever.

Golden Moments

Gold is the color of these moments.
Of the days spent in idyllic pleasure.
Leisurely, we’d set paper boats afloat
Down the streams in green meadows.
Evenings passed in carefree play, and
Nights were when grandma told tales.
Mom and dad would tuck me in bed.
On to the land of dreams, I’d then sail.
Memories of friends in photographs,
Each posing with smiles and laughs.
Nothing compares to those times.
Those were the best days of my life
Saved as remembrances in my mind.

PS: This is an acrostic poem. Join the first letter of each line and see what you get!

The End

It’s the end of the journey.
The flame clings to the last drop of oil
Carried by the last bit of wick.

While it lasted, it saw everything –
The white of lies, the grey of ambiguity,
The red of love, and the black of malice.

Now, its tiny yellow and orange shape
Casts a dim shadow on the wall
With no escape from its fate.

It struggles against the gusts of winds
Hoping for one more opportunity
To flicker, to dance wildly, to just breathe.

Slowly and slowly, it loses strength.
And its will also fades away
With each passing moment.

Then, with a final sigh, it gets snuffed
Released from all that it suffered
Curling into a wisp of smoke.

The last trace of the flame is gone
And with it, all the colors
Mingle into the vast azure calm.

Ashen Grief

Somewhere deep within my heart,
The garden we nurtured is ablaze.
The love we had was ripped apart
When you left me and went away.

The memories of us being together,
Each one, like a petal of a red rose.
All that we shared with each other,
Like creepers, entwined with hope.

And now, a raging wildfire blazes
Destroying each petal and leaf.
Everything I cherished, it erases,
Till all that’s left is ashen grief.

Days turn into months and years,
But the layers of grey still remain.
At times, a budlike illusion appears,
But it’s just a mirage evoking pain.

The Bee and the Rose

O! It was a scarlet shame!
The way they were together –
The bee and the rose blossom
In the small, fenced bower!

He couldn’t resist kissing her
As she trembled in the morning.
With her velvet petals unfurled,
She looked beautiful and tempting.

And she didn’t stop him either,
But delighted in his affection.
Yes, they were unabashed lovers
Who didn’t hide their passion.

“Oh dear me!” Said the Amaryllis.
“What blatant shamelessness!”
“Why, yes!” Nodded the peonies.
“Towards damnation, they’re headed!”

The chrysanthemums all whispered
“Something has to be done quickly.
What would our little buds learn
If this brazenness, they should see?!”

And they all tried hard in vain,
But couldn’t restrain the lovers.
And so, they’re still a scarlet shame –
The bee and the rose in the bower.

Crimson Fury

Rivers of blood;
Generations of blood
Lost to aggression
By men who are captive to borders
Drawn on maps with the pen,
By men who are slaves to religion
Written in books with the pen,
By men who are controlled by power
Assigned in offices with the pen,
The price of childhood and innocence,
Of freedom and peace is death.
I know not what is right in this world,
But I am sure there’s much that’s wrong.
So, when I die during this war,
Know that I regretted being helpless,
And bury me not in a patch of daisies
But in a field of red Cockscomb blooms,
Under the fiery red evening sun,
That I may rise again
With crimson fury in my veins,
And a pen that’s mightier than the mighty
That will rewrite the script of humanity
Not on paper, but in the souls of men,
That lives may not be snuffed again
Due to borders, religion, or power
And peace reigns over all, forever.

My Heart Beats For You

My heart beats for you
With a crazy jungle beat.
It goes a-dum-dee-dum-doo-doo-
Bid-a-bop-bop-bop-beep-beep.

My heart beats for you
And every time we meet,
Can you hear it, too?
Coz I see you tappin’ your feet!

My heart beats for you
With a special love so sweet.
With you, each moment’s new
As the beat plays on repeat.

My heart beats for you,
And it ain’t hard to see
That everything I ever do
Is so that you keep loving me.

My heart beats for you
Louder than a carnival on the street.
It goes a-dum-dee-dum-doo-doo-
Bid-a-bop-bop-bop-beep-beep.

The Little Girl and Mount Everest

There once was a little girl
Just like every other little girl in the world.
She loved dresses, dolls, and parties
Just like every other little girl in the cities.

But alas! One day, tragedy befell,
And, in an accident, she lost one leg.
Then, followed days of tears and regret.
“She has no future,” all the people said.

“Even with the use of a prosthetic leg
She’d be a burden and always dependent.”
But, something stirred in this little girl,
Who refused to accept all these words.

With determination, she made a pledge
To conquer the peak of Mount Everest.
A step at a time helped her gain strength,
And, with discipline, she trained herself.

The sands of time saw her evolve
Into a warrior girl with steely resolve.
And it was with this never-give-up mindset
That she scaled the mighty Mount Everest.

When You Said Nothing, But I Heard It All

The best things in life don’t make a lot of noise.

Like the Big Bang that birthed the Universe.
Like the life that takes shape in the womb of a mother.
Like the pearl that’s made from a grain of sand.
Like our love that sprouted when you clasped my hand.

In that moment, nothing was spoken,
Yet a bond was formed that couldn’t be broken.
In that moment, I heard everything –
Your promises of a love everlasting.

It was more than you just being there with me,
More than just a physical touch that I was feeling.
At that moment, I saw my life in a panoramic view.
My past, present, and future were with you.

I could never reveal what I saw and felt,
But in that moment, when our eyes met,
Something in the way you gazed back at me
Told me that you, too, had the same feeling.

Once Upon a Grey Day

The day was grey.
Grey it was, in every way.
The grey clouds cast a pall of gloom
Like the sky was mourning some doom.
Even the air that flowed around was grey
Carrying a chill for all who inhaled.
The grey street just blankly stared
As folks tred on with hearts greyed.
And that was how I turned grey, too
As I sat on a grey park-bench and rued.

Suddenly, you floated into view.
You smiled and asked, “How are you?”
With your lilting and happy voice
That instantly made me rejoice.

In that moment, the greys peeled away
To reveal a bright, technicolor day.
The clouds were cottony puffs of white,
And a rainbow glittered in the blue sky.
The air, with perfume, was fragrant
And warm like on a summer evening.
The street was decked with gay festoons
As if a carnival would approach soon.
And, each person skipped by
Humming a song with twinkling eyes.

And oh! That was when I saw myself
Blazing like the sunset with happiness!

A Love That Lasts

We fought.
Like the skies during a thunderstorm.
A spark lit, and like lightning, I lashed out.
You roared like the gunmetal grey clouds.
We howled at each other like the winds,
And like raindrops, flew the accusations.
It seemed as though the end had neared –
The end of our love, our world, our Universe.

And then, with the dawn, tiptoed a light
Spreading warmth and color on all sides.
We both couldn’t help but stop and stare
At the resplendent beauty everywhere.
Just as it seemed the damage had been done,
And the crack in our relationship couldn’t be undone,
The golden light of love brought forth a horizon
And we were united once again as one.

As we looked back at the fight,
We couldn’t reminisce who was wrong or right.
But, of one thing, we did become certain –
Our love would outlast everything.