Of Red and White roses
>> Friday, June 1, 2007
Of Red and White roses
Stare not at my white and frozen face
at my upturned nose
still stubborn.
Iron hair.
Ash.
Don't let him read from a book
that an unfortunate bachelor scripted
in his mid-life crisis.
Don't ask an unknown entity
secure a place in never land.
Stop praising my wretched parents
She who never forgot to remind
I was the mistake of a blotched expiry date.
Tell them I spat on her grave
with a dumbfounded crowd suspecting me Possessed.
He tried to devote every moment of his life
To protect, love and understand.
Unforgiven,
he was snatched when I was nine.
The only man I prayed to and for.
Pause at the names of schools and colleges
And then swear.
How they made my life miserable
'cause knowledge comes at a cost.
Talk about the bitch Rachel
stripped me with words in front of the college
Confiscated my I-card, Degree and esteem.
Reminded the Cost of Life.
Don't reside on the urchins I fed
Tell them how I gnawed on leftovers in my teens
When you say I donated clothes,
remind them I had two pairs of shirts for years.
'Magic numbers' they called me at work
Cause I never had paper to practise.
Super-memory, you say
Because I remember every scar I bore.
Enough about my present bosses,
Mishra is the name to cry out
Stole my work, recognition and salary
for 5 whole years.
Dedicate an ode to Sheela
A black-and-gold thread around her neck
bound her to me
through every Indian Tragedy and nightmare.
Unemployed.
Jailed.
Tarnished.
Hospitalised.
Orphaned.
Accused.
She was there.
The dimple on my chin.
And remains.
Yes, my children are big and strong
Hari and Neeta(Bless you!)
They loved, fought, loved.
But I never forgot Sandesh
In my arms, when he was
6 months old.
My arms thence weak
with the burden of a child I couldn't save.
Yes, I have money and cash!
All earned through sweat and blood
so don't you dare bless Destiny!
None of it came through charity
or smashed through my once-tin roof.
The millions of creases on my forehead
Each have a story to tell.
Patience, Wit and Stubbornness
not Wagging, Lies or Bribe.
A Life well Deserved
A Death well Lived.
Read more...
Stare not at my white and frozen face
at my upturned nose
still stubborn.
Iron hair.
Ash.
Don't let him read from a book
that an unfortunate bachelor scripted
in his mid-life crisis.
Don't ask an unknown entity
secure a place in never land.
Stop praising my wretched parents
She who never forgot to remind
I was the mistake of a blotched expiry date.
Tell them I spat on her grave
with a dumbfounded crowd suspecting me Possessed.
He tried to devote every moment of his life
To protect, love and understand.
Unforgiven,
he was snatched when I was nine.
The only man I prayed to and for.
Pause at the names of schools and colleges
And then swear.
How they made my life miserable
'cause knowledge comes at a cost.
Talk about the bitch Rachel
stripped me with words in front of the college
Confiscated my I-card, Degree and esteem.
Reminded the Cost of Life.
Don't reside on the urchins I fed
Tell them how I gnawed on leftovers in my teens
When you say I donated clothes,
remind them I had two pairs of shirts for years.
'Magic numbers' they called me at work
Cause I never had paper to practise.
Super-memory, you say
Because I remember every scar I bore.
Enough about my present bosses,
Mishra is the name to cry out
Stole my work, recognition and salary
for 5 whole years.
Dedicate an ode to Sheela
A black-and-gold thread around her neck
bound her to me
through every Indian Tragedy and nightmare.
Unemployed.
Jailed.
Tarnished.
Hospitalised.
Orphaned.
Accused.
She was there.
The dimple on my chin.
And remains.
Yes, my children are big and strong
Hari and Neeta(Bless you!)
They loved, fought, loved.
But I never forgot Sandesh
In my arms, when he was
6 months old.
My arms thence weak
with the burden of a child I couldn't save.
Yes, I have money and cash!
All earned through sweat and blood
so don't you dare bless Destiny!
None of it came through charity
or smashed through my once-tin roof.
The millions of creases on my forehead
Each have a story to tell.
Patience, Wit and Stubbornness
not Wagging, Lies or Bribe.
A Life well Deserved
A Death well Lived.
