It was a strange time.
Standing at the edge,
I was unable to decide –
Should I take the step?

A lot had been advised.
A lot also introspected.
Yet I stood on the line
Fearing the unexpected.

What if I should fail?
What if I should lose?
Defeated by self-blame,
I searched for a truce.

Should I turn back?
Should I reconsider?
Maybe another plan
Could avoid failure.

Frustrated, I scribbled
“I Can’t” on a blank page.
Then, left it folded,
Trying hard to forget.

With no decision yet
I unfolded the page.
The crease had split
The written phrase.

Then, it was that I saw
The “I Can” in the “I Can’t.”
And, with a feeling of awe
I let go of my “Shan’ts.”

We all need such messages
At the crossroads of our lives.
And, this is how a folded page
Helped me overcome my strife.

O! What is a life worth
If it is devoid of mirth?
Like the stars at night
Some laughter delights.

So laugh away with joy
Like little girls and boys.
Open your eyes to see
Moments to be happy.

There’s always a choice
To be gloomy or rejoice.
When you get the chance
Make merry and dance.

Like Nature, free yourself.
Watch trouble ease itself.
Let mirth become a habit.
It’s a vitamin for the spirit.

Somewhere in a corner of my mind,
Deep within dark caverns labyrinthine,
There lies a dusty memory in repose
Very much akin to a withered, red rose.

The petals are dry, but deeply shaded
With just a little fragrance, now faded.
And frozen in space and time, with it
Are stem, leaves and thorns complete.

In moments that are entirely my own
To that secluded chamber, I feel drawn,
And I relive precious moments of my life-
Moments that have long passed me by.

The scenes evoked are vivid and bright.
The events and people all come to life.
It is as if time stopped in its tracks
And turned around to take me back.

Hooked, I long to seek the rose again-
To revel in the walk down memory lane.
The rose lies motionless in suspension-
Withered, yet alive, by untold emotions.

Let’s consider some perspectives.
The Sun moves around the center of the galaxy
Completing one orbit in a cosmic year.
Each cosmic year equals 230 million Earth years.
And the Sun has seen 20.5 cosmic years.
The Earth moves around the blazing Sun.
Completing one orbit in a year.
Each year equals 365 Earth days.
And the Earth has seen 4.5 billion years.
And then there’s you, racing around all your desires.
Letting unfulfilled expectations rule.
Passing judgements based on emotions.
Creating definitions from perceptions.
In an average life span of seventy years,
You forget that all that matters is
Not the next day, hour or minute,
But just the next second
When you – breathe.

Logic says the Moon is far away from Earth.
384,400 kilometers away to be precise.
A thin layer of gases form its atmosphere
And breathing these would surely cause a human to die.
Its surface is uneven with many round craters
Where space rocks crash and the ground gets pulverized.
But the wings of my dreams take me on an adventure
In which I can whoosh away to the silver satellite,
And discover that it is entirely made of cheddar
As the old man living there greets me with a high five.
“But this defies logic!!!” So will say the naysayers.
And yes, it’s true, what they say is right.
But listen closely to me, my brothers and sisters.
Nothing’s impossible when imagination takes flight.

Do you know Siri, Cortana or Bixby can be of assistance
To set reminders or to look for misplaced earphones?
No, these are not the names of lovers or girlfriends.
These are some creations with artificial intelligence.

Have you heard about robotaxis that drive on their own?
Or shopped at stores without any checkout interaction?
All of these are not from the pages of science fiction.
These are the manifestations of artificial intelligence.

Yes, to create machines that interact like humans,
To provide them with a mechanism for making decisions,
To go beyond the edges that limit his own reasoning,
This is man on his journey with artificial intelligence.

What was just imagination in the times ancient
Is now evolving into reality in the name of solutions.
Scientists assure that it will never replace humans,
But will this child be the father of the bionic man?

‘Tis true that the mirror never lies.
‘Tis a logic that couldn’t be defied.
What you are is what you will see,
And this is for all things till infinity.

The mirror sees all and reflects all –
Beauty that appeals; scars that appall.
No color or curve can stay hidden
When tested in a mirror’s reflection.

The mirror is a window to the world
That ones own eyes couldn’t behold.
With every minute detail, it unfurls
A vision of the depths of the soul.

A mirror will never distort the truth
Even if it’s broken in tiny pieces, too.
In moments when delusions surround
The verity, in a mirror, can be found.

If reason would have ruled, there’d be no wars
What prompts men to maim and kill their brethren,
If not emotions like hatred, disdain, fear and anger?
Why don’t the cries and sufferings from times ancient
Lead us towards a peaceful life with each other?
Why do we trade reason to pacify these bitter emotions?

Deep within each one of us,
there lies a child so tender –
Bright-eyed and innocent,
curious and full of wonder.
O! Where’s the map to retrace
This long-forgotten treasure?

Why the panic?! Where’s the fire?!
Haste leads to consequences dire!
Consider carefully all the options
Before bringing a plan to fruition.
It could be deciding what to wear
Or going for a drive somewhere.
With impatience, you may forget
Important things, and then regret.
For, hurrying blinds the mind’s eye –
And is a waste of your precious time.

“It’s thirty minutes into the examination.”
So went the invigilator’s announcement.
In the silent room, her voice reverberated.
Grabbing the attention of all the students.

The only sound that followed thereafter
Was the scribbling of pens on the papers,
Intermittently punctuated by the rustles
Of notes laden pages being turned over.

And this was the case for all except one.
He, too, sat with his head lowered down.
Except that his answer sheet was blank,
And he was thirty minutes into the exam.

He was staring at the empty white paper –
Beads of sweat forming on his forehead.
It was at that moment that he could hear,
“Read it again, you’ve studied this before.”

“Read it,” coaxed the page that was blank.
“You know the solution to the question.”
With renewed hope, he reread the query.
In his mind, the answers started forming.

Soon the pages were not blank anymore.
He passed the exam with a decent score.
For truth be told, my dear friends,
A blank page is never ever silent.