Pens and Pages

Broken bones and a bruised face, He checked the mirror- The nightmare's back again. Palms that bled and fingers without nails. An empty heart and a blank page. He feeds himself on the frozen salad- Last year's leftovers, he did not forget. He could let go of sleep Or he could sit and bleed. He chooses to embrace the red So, within the four walls, he stayed. Why stay when you can leave? But all of this has happened before, Not a curse, it's a habit, he said.

Sitting on a rock near the lake, Tisha was ruminating on what went wrong in her dream. Alas! She couldn’t recall how her dream ended; but she wished she could. Playing with her dark brown hair with her fingers, she wondered what if for once her dream didn’t come true. When she realized that she was hoping for something people pray the contrary of, she laughed at her cursed life. It is time. She looked at the sky above and a tiny drop of water fell on her right cheek. It began to rain and she turned around to find her little sister coming towards her in a hurry carrying a red umbrella with her tiny hands. The umbrella, how could I forget it? It was common for Tisha to have weird dreams; dreams of people she didn’t know, dreams of people she knew, dreams of herself, et cetera.  It was when she was 10 years old that she realized her dreams come true; or rather whatever would happen the next day she would see it beforehand in her dreams. At first she used to dream about fall...

My brave warrior, Thou art no Lazarus. Thou will not resurrect. Thou dig thy own grave. Thou cannot bequeath Thy slayings to the soil. The soil shall not bury Thy charred soul. Eden waits not for thou. Thy scars won't go; They won't leave, They won't heal. Wear them as a curse. Wear them as a curse Till thy corpse rot. Thy soul shall suffer While the blood-stained Weeds will shout, "Wear it as a curse, Wear it as a curse!"

If only tears could heal... Poem to be published in Minds at Work 2 by FirstStep Publishing

[ The poem is written as a tribute and encouragement to the unfortunate rape victims of the society who are fighting every day to live with dignity.  This poem is published in  Read In Park ] Never had known pain, As I do now… Never knew what grief is, But I do now… When the morning sun knocks on my window, I weep silently recalling that loathsome night, When the rays fall on my wet pillow, I wail in self pity ending another sleepless night. Every morning I look into the mirror To see the detested face, Robbed, touched, raped, I now loathe my every single trace. I had begged for help, Had cried for mercy, But no one took a single step, That night to rescue me     They jeered at my pain, Laughed at my plight, “Men” they called themselves Those beasts of that night The fear that arouse in me, I fear it may bring my death Growing day by day, It questions my each breath The bruises on my face will heal, ...

It was a busy day; busy roads, crowded buses, noisy markets and traffic jams.  As usual, I was returning home after delivering a two-hour long and mundane lecture about bonsais at my College. Since two years I have been teaching the same content to the students of the same College. Three seasons have passed since I first decided to change my workplace, to teach in a better school, or the University; but all my attempts of commuting the job have been futile. I was winnowed out from both the Colleges I had applied in the past few months.  The day after was a big day: after flunking in the first entrance test and after arduous striving, I finally qualified for an interview at the State University, and it was due the next day. The University was offering a handsome salary to lectors and I did not, at any cost, want to lose this opportunity. Consequently I had been preparing for the next day’s interview for the last few days. Even on my way home, I was reading ...