tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-360170512024-03-13T15:43:17.928+05:30The Verse is Yet to ComePoetry, prose, philosophy, news, art, culture, life, sport (of course) and other universal conflicts...Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.comBlogger257125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-14224090187519163712022-03-28T18:42:00.001+05:302022-03-28T18:42:49.382+05:30Zooming in on Fireflies<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">A few minutes past six,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">as light dims on</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the Monday chores,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">they appear,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">on my right,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">beyond a pale green</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">pre-summer canopy.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Six lamps. Or is it more?</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Oh, the inadequacy of vision!</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">They, the fireflies,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">hang in the air, a straight string;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">dot on the line of sight my</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">seat provides,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">through random banters<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and toward specifics in history,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">for the politics of posterity.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: georgia, serif;">-- Leslie<br /></span> </span><br /></span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqWJ-Wt7ZHecI72r6wGGD6BRD5oj_CObImsI9uQpYcG5iCDIk9LNtyIHlzVsZ5QquYVLPQPEqLJOgRg28sumR7WoMvjhmQ1K_S4RDfSVewKtGblorKz__aDUII3wE3m0cNpxCWCzcDL-iPsVSfH57sOJEDkSHM86i6z9tGVlHpd67YbYYAQyA/s421/fireflies-poem.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><img border="0" data-original-height="254" data-original-width="421" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqWJ-Wt7ZHecI72r6wGGD6BRD5oj_CObImsI9uQpYcG5iCDIk9LNtyIHlzVsZ5QquYVLPQPEqLJOgRg28sumR7WoMvjhmQ1K_S4RDfSVewKtGblorKz__aDUII3wE3m0cNpxCWCzcDL-iPsVSfH57sOJEDkSHM86i6z9tGVlHpd67YbYYAQyA/s320/fireflies-poem.png" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-65669042564158826822021-12-13T18:12:00.001+05:302021-12-13T18:12:33.954+05:30The Dilated Song<div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">Wish I could slow down</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">the song I play,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">buying dilated time.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">Its tempo reigned in,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">but it's timbre intact,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">for I dare not change the tune.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">Will it help the dreams </span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">linger on in a trance,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">a tad longer,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">a minute or two,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">a second or an hour,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">a day or eternity.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">The song heralds eternity,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and it plays in a loop.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">Alas, time, its vagaries,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">is linear, is a knife.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">It rips open the winter jacket,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">but it cuts cakes too...</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEim36KLaZgyMHzgnz6SNJWJeoLaViVFaHatqhHVq7_ipzXsOTsej8SuA4ZAcVoEUQ3XOe-2NHyBSPWkLj-BmrbN86RWSHoJT7AHfYM1xsu2Nv9c1REYOhLqoIzW3mXqNYqK69jdlBkX98Z_zEl3VU4VrFETOa3zViiwXcfrObDolt0Cx7Xoo5U=s713" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="434" data-original-width="713" height="195" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEim36KLaZgyMHzgnz6SNJWJeoLaViVFaHatqhHVq7_ipzXsOTsej8SuA4ZAcVoEUQ3XOe-2NHyBSPWkLj-BmrbN86RWSHoJT7AHfYM1xsu2Nv9c1REYOhLqoIzW3mXqNYqK69jdlBkX98Z_zEl3VU4VrFETOa3zViiwXcfrObDolt0Cx7Xoo5U=s320" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div><br /></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-2926421953337510522021-12-12T08:10:00.002+05:302021-12-12T08:10:45.182+05:30Love, A Reflection<div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">In a world without mirrors,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">sans judgement,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and harsh glares,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">I would spend</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">the vanity left in me</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">to cry, then reflect...</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">I become my mirror.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">And, in the images</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">flashing by,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">droplets of cold sweat</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">provide gloss</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">as well as the shivers.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">Then, three hours past midnight</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">I touch her,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">she kisses me,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and we see</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">our reflections merge,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">within hand-held Amoled frames.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">... In a world without mirrors,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">three hours past midnight!</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span><span style="font-family: times; font-size: xx-large;"> </span></span></div><p><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"></span></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgealC2vtk5rcsZOYx0eq9B4no2XcFrFMCXAUg0w01j8KHVJFFSb0PrDCJyTMK3uWFYEz3PPARtsJfGGqqS7mEPx4e6uFv1GMWsDs39ISigLArkK_I2_tungvzrvF0JhKJ7I9R1ISH-NbLwgzzSaUNPf2g8ahFVYA6ns1mehGqHVwcR9YIlXeI=s1000" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="662" data-original-width="1000" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEgealC2vtk5rcsZOYx0eq9B4no2XcFrFMCXAUg0w01j8KHVJFFSb0PrDCJyTMK3uWFYEz3PPARtsJfGGqqS7mEPx4e6uFv1GMWsDs39ISigLArkK_I2_tungvzrvF0JhKJ7I9R1ISH-NbLwgzzSaUNPf2g8ahFVYA6ns1mehGqHVwcR9YIlXeI=s320" width="320" /></a></span></div><p></p>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-52934011568415374612021-12-09T19:48:00.001+05:302021-12-09T19:48:16.978+05:30Winter Longing<div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">Lost for words, are we?</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">No. It's just that </span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">no brew could drown longing,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">the one in winter...</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">It is but a whiff of winter, sure,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">yet the longing grows for</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">the warm rays of a sun</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">as seasoned as the coffee </span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">made by the first Italian barista,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">or as potent as the sun</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">outside the smoking room</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">of an Indian cafe.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">But it rained outside too,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and when it did once,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and when the leaves turned</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">greener with envy,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">it indeed was a reminder</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">winters don't last,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">but its longing does,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and it freezes it below nought.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjiuq7YuU4fxXYt9CdM8zlPhQLlJEpldzVX1SIyHz9Nll-Mb-Vv8dSBr9YsbfyuuajoSy938no__CIkyJVNkp-AynQkWLlbzhQFgerOHWWULsUXr7iACln0iQNzieZJbzT_GcD__l13XVwKHnJTdfAkKBwgYo4VrTix61Kgy7VqZtsY1NZ2yxw=s511" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><img border="0" data-original-height="335" data-original-width="511" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEjiuq7YuU4fxXYt9CdM8zlPhQLlJEpldzVX1SIyHz9Nll-Mb-Vv8dSBr9YsbfyuuajoSy938no__CIkyJVNkp-AynQkWLlbzhQFgerOHWWULsUXr7iACln0iQNzieZJbzT_GcD__l13XVwKHnJTdfAkKBwgYo4VrTix61Kgy7VqZtsY1NZ2yxw=s320" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><br /></span><div><br /></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-35960768430139021392021-12-07T17:12:00.001+05:302021-12-07T17:12:55.672+05:30Poetic Reality<div style="text-align: left;"><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">If it's a slap one seeks,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">look no further...</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Pick a mundane pen,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">write poems under the sun,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">wrap it in soiled,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">oil soaked crumpled newspapers,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">preferably with stale news;</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">take it up a flight of stairs.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">And when, only when it's past midnight,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">light it up...</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Hold it up longer,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">enough to burn the fingers</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">which held the pen,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and also held meaning</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">a mere few seconds back.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Leave it there, let it burn.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Morning, read from the ashes.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Cry... Pry open the poetry chest,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">search again,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">soul searching, hole searching,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and write:</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Some verses for posterity,</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">some for the next paper</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">to wrap the day's love and effort.</span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div></div><div dir="auto"><div dir="auto"><div dir="auto"><span style="background-color: white; color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW01_372n_3wvSU4VDwG2DcVge9hJqbWLY4HJuSuTVnJXE0W_KXua63mrhVFVUw-rUfZlyDmSdtvhDr5qWKj0X4FPmKGYfR16Xfjbj2IjHEV09nxxHEMKPG3ESzsm9E8E-KOcjyA/" style="background-color: white; margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="313" data-original-width="577" height="174" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjW01_372n_3wvSU4VDwG2DcVge9hJqbWLY4HJuSuTVnJXE0W_KXua63mrhVFVUw-rUfZlyDmSdtvhDr5qWKj0X4FPmKGYfR16Xfjbj2IjHEV09nxxHEMKPG3ESzsm9E8E-KOcjyA/" width="320" /></a></div></span></div></div></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-77559107341071495652021-12-04T20:16:00.001+05:302021-12-04T20:16:44.888+05:30The Milky Way<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">The flashes are daily now, </span></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the forgotten Astrophysics lessons,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">-- meant for the stars,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">grounded for substance --</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">visits me in the mornings...</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">When, earlier,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">I would only see chaos</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">dancing at the traffic lights</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">next to my window,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the dance for a living.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Now, I deal with bubbles,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">brewing in the warmth </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">of my words,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">thoughts and deeds,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">a fine white brew</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">meant to be gulped down,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">but sipped, always, like whiskey.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">That's a galaxy, it's the Milky Way,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and it's where science ends,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and my art begins.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegGW2ko3E6fwQzPxUrf9tlYHMltU-QnJ2Wp5uA4zL6Gn5N4FHmBb36Cj82Ed8xl_lly2VtsVnBcvm3o1xM4E8lcvbz2TOlUDiaU28UqGfRqy9h8Z-454YFW2j9eKccK4mBjINLw/s475/the-milky-way.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><img border="0" data-original-height="270" data-original-width="475" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhegGW2ko3E6fwQzPxUrf9tlYHMltU-QnJ2Wp5uA4zL6Gn5N4FHmBb36Cj82Ed8xl_lly2VtsVnBcvm3o1xM4E8lcvbz2TOlUDiaU28UqGfRqy9h8Z-454YFW2j9eKccK4mBjINLw/s320/the-milky-way.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><br /></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-43674633872734829432021-11-30T20:03:00.000+05:302021-11-30T20:03:59.111+05:30Flowering Epitaphs<div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"></span>If there were a few plaques</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">placed in random order</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">next to my flower pots,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">would that make them</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">party to the larger injustice</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">the blooms <span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">highlight</span>?</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Life, indeed, is a collection</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">of epitaphs<span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"> in stale air</span>,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">some lost in the attic,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">some to the vagaries of</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">destructive rebuilding,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">and many among flowers...</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">... In random order,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">the <span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">notions</span> gather grime,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"></span>my dog chases squirrels around them.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">His present, mine too,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">and </span>the world stays</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">shrouded in smog.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9xOATTx9wMexIMjpkalZewr3A-BblQWfKHJ22E60HsdGTp6pCYILh70BSBsp7RWUA1V66V1u4h3Z_hkXSI_9ParKxTcE-k4BpSMUFMCDOciDuz5Izl-ZBtemFR8EN68KYlaeZrw/s515/smog-delhi-flowers-bloom.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="296" data-original-width="515" height="184" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9xOATTx9wMexIMjpkalZewr3A-BblQWfKHJ22E60HsdGTp6pCYILh70BSBsp7RWUA1V66V1u4h3Z_hkXSI_9ParKxTcE-k4BpSMUFMCDOciDuz5Izl-ZBtemFR8EN68KYlaeZrw/s320/smog-delhi-flowers-bloom.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-63882684189468399192021-11-27T01:11:00.001+05:302021-11-27T01:11:55.532+05:30 The World in a Cupcake<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">I seek dreams in the embers,</span></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the stragglers which linger on,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">after the flame was doused</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">by the will of the girl.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">It is life she</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">holds aloft tonight</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">-- a blueberry cupcake,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and our world.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">A very different </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">winter moon sings too,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">shedding arrogance and indifference.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">The hymns, no the chimes,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the songs of destiny,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">leave me gasping for verses,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">to breathe into her poem</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">that would reignite the flame.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">The embers smile,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">they know exactly why...</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">They need her breath </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">of fresh air, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">but are yet to fathom her words.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Two winters into her book,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">I am yet to metre </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">its depth either.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7WsCJm2CoJOahi_b4uqRjFGUvk3QbMrjtCLC-cRNxbSINIszKSlJA4E-XoHuvthCtdFjKWW55hKh7r_JOy9W5c4vYJbk_I3zJ6BhZULtbk2QKrAj7JTFAjBWI_dduos3-NYjIHw/s2048/blueberry-cupcake-poetry.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #eeeeee;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1417" data-original-width="2048" height="221" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7WsCJm2CoJOahi_b4uqRjFGUvk3QbMrjtCLC-cRNxbSINIszKSlJA4E-XoHuvthCtdFjKWW55hKh7r_JOy9W5c4vYJbk_I3zJ6BhZULtbk2QKrAj7JTFAjBWI_dduos3-NYjIHw/s320/blueberry-cupcake-poetry.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-75294084926426481522021-11-20T20:20:00.000+05:302021-11-20T20:20:42.372+05:30The Whining River<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">In <span class="gmail_default">torrential </span>spate </span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">it realised<span class="gmail_default"> </span>the bunds,</span><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default">the</span> boundaries<span class="gmail_default">,</span> <br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">were not <span class="gmail_default">set by its will.</span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default">They belong to</span> the contractor</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">who poured the concrete<span class="gmail_default">, </span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default">a quick mix, </span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default">a quicker fix,</span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default">marked</span> the limits,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">killed <span class="gmail_default">its</span> flow,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and tamed <span class="gmail_default">its</span> will<span class="gmail_default">,</span></span></div><div><span class="gmail_default"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">bounty, reverence notwithstanding.</span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">Well, I'll be damned,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">but aren't we all dam<span class="gmail_default">m</span>ed!</span></div><div dir="auto"><div class="gmail_default"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">And, amidst the cacophony</span></div><div class="gmail_default"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">of an eerily silent night,</span></div><div class="gmail_default"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">we hear ourselves</span></div></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default">whine</span> like the winding river...</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><div class="gmail_default"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times;"><br /></span></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5BHHHv97k3N_Fv17ggPFAB73e_5OZ3n6rvTmQDiakqjyTqFq8s0iHkVEGChUm9uEJVmu_GdfxWZOLkAK-_pPnBRSfimJ-91GMB7j6NfNoTgXHARlZNVhyMQfUmuT9qEz_luBSBw/s578/river-flood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="310" data-original-width="578" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg5BHHHv97k3N_Fv17ggPFAB73e_5OZ3n6rvTmQDiakqjyTqFq8s0iHkVEGChUm9uEJVmu_GdfxWZOLkAK-_pPnBRSfimJ-91GMB7j6NfNoTgXHARlZNVhyMQfUmuT9qEz_luBSBw/s320/river-flood.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><div><br /></div></div></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-15784660142038856452021-11-16T00:09:00.003+05:302021-11-16T00:10:54.831+05:30A Sleepy Destination<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">The sheer thanklessness</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">of a winter night</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">gives us the right bearings,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and light,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">to embark on a journey, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">any journey,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">even the ten paces required </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">to reach sleep.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Oh, indeed!</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">It is but sleep we crave for,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">plan in earnest,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and pay for,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">with the dreams,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the kind we all see,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and then fail to live,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">come winter, or summer.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-size: small;" /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8ORty5ze2M6M7VSAydF47QgJm-JKOpFXjdBVvJktC0KbsKt00RateoJXRzMfEX1zO6qOTj9cw5-hLcWJyifnq2m1tzAlnA2w7MQ1ABrfdWZFWEaZNmJgS4ii7CBxocZ8Toc4Llw/s366/sleeping-buddha.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="197" data-original-width="366" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8ORty5ze2M6M7VSAydF47QgJm-JKOpFXjdBVvJktC0KbsKt00RateoJXRzMfEX1zO6qOTj9cw5-hLcWJyifnq2m1tzAlnA2w7MQ1ABrfdWZFWEaZNmJgS4ii7CBxocZ8Toc4Llw/s320/sleeping-buddha.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><br /></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-21592869779321452532021-11-14T23:51:00.000+05:302021-11-14T23:51:19.423+05:30Ode to the Midnight Shadow<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">If the shadow,</span></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the one dancing outside</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">my window,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">dares to move yonder,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">across the road,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">he will get arrested...<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">For sleepwalking, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">says the cop who snores on duty.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">He reminds us of light,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">of vision, or the lack of it.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">He gyrates,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">in and out of reality checks.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">While we, hither, sit back,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">stretch our egos,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">talk with our fingers,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">salvage conscience with a retweet.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="color: #222222; font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="color: #222222; font-family: georgia, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyuyVcSSE2yUHslL6Ks59YU4_5mwfEzy-F_35IjmKF1NMmSGmiw1A0bvsa1fdY9uBZeSOEXH9fLs0wnRnxev05vfMMl06p4UkKntJCaPPL_FHkxLXuwjJe9enzR0rUcpxP62KFzQ/s718/shadow-poetry.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="346" data-original-width="718" height="154" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjyuyVcSSE2yUHslL6Ks59YU4_5mwfEzy-F_35IjmKF1NMmSGmiw1A0bvsa1fdY9uBZeSOEXH9fLs0wnRnxev05vfMMl06p4UkKntJCaPPL_FHkxLXuwjJe9enzR0rUcpxP62KFzQ/s320/shadow-poetry.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-86040326571474774712021-11-13T23:33:00.004+05:302021-11-13T23:39:34.264+05:30How to Age a Poem<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">A few lines,</span></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">which, in its existence,</span></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">is older than the writer,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the bard, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">who scribbled the words</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">when he was in his 40s.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">Now, how will a child<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">grow older than her father?</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">If the verses were written</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">with an half empty rum bottle<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">kept dangling near </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the pen that is showing its age;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and if it is read over wine,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">a young, angry, red bottle,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the cheapest possible blend,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">cheaper than the recited words....<br /><br />Then, it grows old, the poem;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the writer gets younger,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">and we all heave in</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">the brown, polluted,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">yet sensuous air... </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">So, shall we?</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #eeeeee; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="color: #222222; font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: small;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHfNkRAi-S4bTVq-jOmvwg-cIDOTjsnw3kMJGcGfhua8_HnU2GI2_B4aJThZbkemcWRHLrPsgwl38wHYYOXIqkKc8BeyT3pUaS96Q6RHC8qHIef5oJ6QPdPJzOG-tR7HlSFXJ6nQ/s646/wine-poetry.png" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="416" data-original-width="646" height="206" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHfNkRAi-S4bTVq-jOmvwg-cIDOTjsnw3kMJGcGfhua8_HnU2GI2_B4aJThZbkemcWRHLrPsgwl38wHYYOXIqkKc8BeyT3pUaS96Q6RHC8qHIef5oJ6QPdPJzOG-tR7HlSFXJ6nQ/s320/wine-poetry.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div class="gmail_default" style="color: #222222; font-family: georgia, serif; font-size: small;"><br /></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-25689388365935783662021-10-23T19:32:00.003+05:302021-10-23T19:32:39.553+05:30Salvation in a Tea Cup<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">The game ended prematurely.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Sigh!</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">The tease from the empty cup</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">was over in seconds, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">even before I could </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">burp out the verses;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">it lasted barely two lines...</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">The first, a dedication,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">to the evening,<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the second, to the last drops</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">of the brew,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">stuck to the edges </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">waiting for salvation,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the kind we all deserve.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">The stains remain,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">on the evening sky,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and the coaster carrying</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">baggage from John Lennon!</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI-B3quPQFSWnuzqGBUC3hDf3bUPk6hMjBX7SEMzKTRlCF2o1ID8ZukYBhQLVz4exiK-LLqb23xOc6U3z1y_K6-8Qy15nbsKiTp0k_gTCPkYrmKEJVvVwq3_uRrpOhCRq4SHwWwA/s788/tea-stain_poetry.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="424" data-original-width="788" height="172" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhI-B3quPQFSWnuzqGBUC3hDf3bUPk6hMjBX7SEMzKTRlCF2o1ID8ZukYBhQLVz4exiK-LLqb23xOc6U3z1y_K6-8Qy15nbsKiTp0k_gTCPkYrmKEJVvVwq3_uRrpOhCRq4SHwWwA/s320/tea-stain_poetry.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><br /></span><span style="color: #222222; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-80023199648260556702021-10-22T20:01:00.001+05:302021-10-22T20:01:52.648+05:30Window Seat Blues<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">The</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> </span><span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">rolled up</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;"> glass,</span><br /><span style="font-family: georgia, serif;">my whimsical barrier</span></span></div><div style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; text-align: left;"><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">for a shrinking playpen.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Will it keep a childhood immortal?</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">And keep out the dust </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">from an unkempt Indian highway .</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">We see reality rush,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">in haste, a future, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">destiny and her wheat shoots.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">The passing fields </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">demand to be sowed, reaped</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and then burnt to dirt.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">It combusts fast though,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the minutes,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and the fuel in our car.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">The radio comes alive,<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">let us run, baby run;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">toward nowhere, yet everywhere.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Toward everything</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">but this trepid window,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">for just behind it lurks our future.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="color: #222222; font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="color: #222222; font-family: georgia, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK1_QISa9G70h5rnMLU8IXks0QsEXn54zdT_2DuPG7_UxpKeKe4FzvWMWGhwZsI5am50zlrm1B5jYc1fkHGeTpW7JQDreegOLudMQp4kZZpeXeVQz6PwWkHcqEcxEXLnLUQgAoyg/s4000/IMG_20211015_142132.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="3000" data-original-width="4000" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiK1_QISa9G70h5rnMLU8IXks0QsEXn54zdT_2DuPG7_UxpKeKe4FzvWMWGhwZsI5am50zlrm1B5jYc1fkHGeTpW7JQDreegOLudMQp4kZZpeXeVQz6PwWkHcqEcxEXLnLUQgAoyg/s320/IMG_20211015_142132.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-53320544727762540142021-09-12T00:03:00.001+05:302021-09-12T00:03:42.328+05:30Rain-Drenched Autocracy<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">In the recess between rains,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">when there is dew,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the ones that lack the </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">honesty of the droplets </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">who unabashedly drench us,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and drown us in</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">their version of love.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Hard love,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">slippery love;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and, over the course of</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">a torrential exuberance,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">some cold love...</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Frozen,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">like the railings</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">of my balcony door,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the metallic reality in it<br />I tasted this day,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">using its truth to</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">numb the index finger,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the one I use to point</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">at life, at others,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">at misgivings and notions;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">at my fallacies,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">at those dusty books even...</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Hardbound,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">words flood their pages,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">like how Delhi was this evening:</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">In shallow water,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">but largely out of its depth,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">it reeled... </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">When it should've scripted songs,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and then harvested</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the fruits of poetry,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the vague, distant yield, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">an honest free will</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">amidst autocracy.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiucY3_MTccFMLxZS_VBV_oTZXHmEcdqbpc4XhAuq7_4aZpQiyp0Xr4Uwiye6dsX9FzeP3Pux0pB2b6T42910X8q9t3cR19L7XHwaSqrl-hPWkXcNPOys42ddg6FmkMosnwczxHrg/s471/delhi-rain-flood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="283" data-original-width="471" height="192" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiucY3_MTccFMLxZS_VBV_oTZXHmEcdqbpc4XhAuq7_4aZpQiyp0Xr4Uwiye6dsX9FzeP3Pux0pB2b6T42910X8q9t3cR19L7XHwaSqrl-hPWkXcNPOys42ddg6FmkMosnwczxHrg/s320/delhi-rain-flood.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-69896035100716577542021-09-07T23:19:00.001+05:302021-09-07T23:20:34.791+05:30The Home<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">These strands I strum,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">six strings from the fabric</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">woven with notes</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">that would, some day, make </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the symphony I'm yet to compose, grow;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">a poem I am yet to write, sing;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the brew I am yet to drink, read;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">yet to... yet to....</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">It stretches from my seat,<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">where I rest </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">breathing heavily,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">perhaps sighing,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">with my back to the wall,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">no, it's a pillar.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">It ends on the ideology</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">that makes you a teacher now.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Strung and tuned, softly, <br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">it is ready for music;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the songs are stubborn, still;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and lightning throws a tantrum, again!<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Then, in my peripheral vision </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the respite arrives, holds me firm,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the rain-kissed canopy in green,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and a life-drenched heart in red. </span></div><p><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: georgia, serif;">-- Leslie</span> </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQyC5X4sTpdsledS2p6ZQqd0zev1BqTNsvp3tctMcHFlYTIzcHHcv84yj3uNICu_L05oDz4ljG2yx3t_tN4zu7xpkOn8lOMafeOrCKg_3OLI-OZ0EGsxEoVJTuAu1MyZ8iNODLsA/s527/Screenshot+2021-09-07+at+23.14.15.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="278" data-original-width="527" height="169" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgQyC5X4sTpdsledS2p6ZQqd0zev1BqTNsvp3tctMcHFlYTIzcHHcv84yj3uNICu_L05oDz4ljG2yx3t_tN4zu7xpkOn8lOMafeOrCKg_3OLI-OZ0EGsxEoVJTuAu1MyZ8iNODLsA/s320/Screenshot+2021-09-07+at+23.14.15.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span><p></p>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-58873335446664955722021-09-03T07:41:00.001+05:302021-09-03T07:41:40.041+05:30Seek n Hide<span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default"></span>In my actual space I, </span><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">carrying a flashlight, virtually,<br /></span><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">stumble in darkness,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">feel the edge of a work desk</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">for direction,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">cut my hand on its</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">chiseled existence,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and call it poetry and justice.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">It must be the apocalypse,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">for it remains hidden,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">the desk,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">its writing instruments,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and its intent...</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">But, in time, maybe tomorrow,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">when it starts to rain,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">I may author the Bible.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">I seek a virtue amongst</span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the long shadows on my desk, </span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">the sarcastic ink bottle</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">I hardly use,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and within the pile of</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">forgotten music notes,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">I search for songs and sin</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">to find light, write the Psalms.</span></div></div><p><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">-- Leslie</span> </span></p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnbb0EkXg3OkhCBtYbd1h-IFuwdzW65I2XQQMxFxsC7B3zCmdBdF8YXbMOKO8Z6JCE9uBRynRPTC5LrzhGR1Y5oy3YFLB6iYrmBovDmkJv2kpbBIP9EWz_zc35IVkRRkYVy_fJBQ/s2400/Screenshot_20210903-072952.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="2400" height="144" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnbb0EkXg3OkhCBtYbd1h-IFuwdzW65I2XQQMxFxsC7B3zCmdBdF8YXbMOKO8Z6JCE9uBRynRPTC5LrzhGR1Y5oy3YFLB6iYrmBovDmkJv2kpbBIP9EWz_zc35IVkRRkYVy_fJBQ/s320/Screenshot_20210903-072952.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span><p></p>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-64059996691195177262021-08-22T09:04:00.003+05:302021-08-22T09:04:59.457+05:30Humid Hangover<div><span style="font-size: x-large;">This humid blanket,</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">the fever it gifts,</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">is all I can muse on,</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">and scribble on the wet floor.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">The rain stopped last night,</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">the songs this morning,</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">and the still air offers a wry smile;</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">it tells me of today,</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">yet yanks me into timelessness,</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">where it shows</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">in infinite ways, love...</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">A few drops touch me,</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">others kiss the leaves </span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">and rusty park benches;</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">soothing them first,</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">drowning them later.</span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie</span></div><div><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLlok5SxKJul9y4erWjhcIwjmgKTZ5uG1__zN7krDAK-VSCLDgC8xPkkoYI32IU-XGJLegTFZao9_gtNNn19v9zud-uF0dXt67RH9_ec956aqJlLlG5i2L8SnT3JDjRELHuSGbKA/s1080/rain-drops-humid-poem.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="737" data-original-width="1080" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLlok5SxKJul9y4erWjhcIwjmgKTZ5uG1__zN7krDAK-VSCLDgC8xPkkoYI32IU-XGJLegTFZao9_gtNNn19v9zud-uF0dXt67RH9_ec956aqJlLlG5i2L8SnT3JDjRELHuSGbKA/s320/rain-drops-humid-poem.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-58143092933764410702021-08-16T00:05:00.000+05:302021-08-16T00:05:12.009+05:30The Wrinkled<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">On my terrace,<br />when I sidestep a crater,<br />and walk to the west edge,<br />I know I let hypocrisy survive,<br />run its course,<br />and feel blissfully immortal.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br />Who craves the sun more?<br />So I walk;<br />they needed a leader,<br />and you, dear friend,<br />needed a freemason to pour<br /> grout on the cracked, wrinkled floor.</span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br />Floor?<br />It is the roof,<br />the one destined to leak,<br />drip, drop,<br /> and a river cried by<br /> a poet of very little means.<br /><br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie <br /></span></div><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAIPjO31E7AWVkLHPY54zYU1DdvQGVzof1pzmWeHQx8Xa9G5ol8uErQ1feEQwTvMWXaurtAZ-lKJsuqNnvJ24-xtpfMHjzI2ZsQATUkAr5tGTrfOSiMOkjf1AnbhvE2E-mpqRMyg/s338/cracked-floor.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="190" data-original-width="338" height="180" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAIPjO31E7AWVkLHPY54zYU1DdvQGVzof1pzmWeHQx8Xa9G5ol8uErQ1feEQwTvMWXaurtAZ-lKJsuqNnvJ24-xtpfMHjzI2ZsQATUkAr5tGTrfOSiMOkjf1AnbhvE2E-mpqRMyg/s320/cracked-floor.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /><div style="text-align: left;"><br /></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-32726111848681483222021-08-15T00:15:00.000+05:302021-08-15T00:15:20.202+05:30Ire in the Sleeping Hall<div><span style="font-family: times;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">In a daze, time leaves me,</span></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">always.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">it's midnight,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">I am yet to shed my skin,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and sprawl without shame,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">without the ironies</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">that define me, </span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and the hour's light blue light!</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">12, the reminder</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">comes with youthful vigour,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">shake me up;</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">but I waste another hour</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">in jest,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">mocking myself,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">killing the words of </span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">birds who tweet for salary.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">Dazed, bruised, </span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">yet in unpopular consciousness,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">I remain,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">till sleep wakes me up,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">splashes ire on my face,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">cleanses my mouth </span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">off bad poetry,</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">and tucks me into bed.</span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div><span style="font-family: times; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie </span></div><div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitUAt_3S19_9pYfKY_ietKZO9my7zobubV65eAkK_92D3D-LWRFHABvVvlkM1KKA16vX_fkbLi3XNpQvIosK3Vc48dGXjt-4eAp0z3dHMbdMg9IyY23G9Yli_h4uHQfoh23gQRoQ/s493/Screenshot+2021-08-15+at+00.02.21.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="276" data-original-width="493" height="179" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitUAt_3S19_9pYfKY_ietKZO9my7zobubV65eAkK_92D3D-LWRFHABvVvlkM1KKA16vX_fkbLi3XNpQvIosK3Vc48dGXjt-4eAp0z3dHMbdMg9IyY23G9Yli_h4uHQfoh23gQRoQ/s320/Screenshot+2021-08-15+at+00.02.21.png" width="320" /></a></div></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-12178068572347636062021-07-19T19:35:00.000+05:302021-07-19T19:35:49.683+05:30Ode to the Monday Rain<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Today, if I were to rush,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">it would only be till</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">the window...</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">To strain for berries, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">and then to catch </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">the tones I missed</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">in the song that's on loop</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">since morning.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">After all, it is Monday, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">a Sabbath for poets.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Monday rains are shy,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">selfless creatures of creation;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">they talk in whispers,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">sing in sighs; </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">leave us with introverts two,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">a background score </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">that loses to the blues<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">in our playlists;<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">the mist, gentle and subdued, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">who stays backstage. Always.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">If the cold drops were smokers,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">or had warm breath like</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">the kids of Democracy,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">they could leave</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">symbols on my pane.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Footnotes on the music,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">their sense, the belonging,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">and who bears the bill</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">for their concert;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">I see an empty hall.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie Xavier</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTFe-ZDQ6q70oz0goMeLJ9p1vRd2SiAQ15vDaTHBveE8Q4bamEtrIsHLRGx4u3JP9dmkJlXZkySkJOcwFb8lZfylfREsW3BXdPJBsk9z0bQt9JpHXFhtg7cbkfj5m9JBsleA2eVg/s1080/Screenshot_20210719-130829%257E2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="791" data-original-width="1080" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTFe-ZDQ6q70oz0goMeLJ9p1vRd2SiAQ15vDaTHBveE8Q4bamEtrIsHLRGx4u3JP9dmkJlXZkySkJOcwFb8lZfylfREsW3BXdPJBsk9z0bQt9JpHXFhtg7cbkfj5m9JBsleA2eVg/s320/Screenshot_20210719-130829%257E2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-85299879277997873542021-07-16T23:49:00.001+05:302021-07-16T23:49:40.324+05:30A Lyrical Reality<div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">If I were to fall short</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">of words today,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and fail,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">will there be a second chance</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">to sing, try once more, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the song my daughter loves...?</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">No...</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">I hear the song</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">played in a loop,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">a random algorithm,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">which shows me the futility</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">in what I desire.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">I yearn to memorize lines,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">but they are too laden</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">with leaves ready for the fall,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">too heavy...</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Instead I store passwords,<br />mindless, meaningless protection.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">If I were to fall short,<br />that fate walked in because<br />the lines I should cherish,<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">were the ones I sold;</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">to those who are tone deaf,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">mute, and mostly arrogant.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Who are they, though?</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Why are they playing </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">the songs</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">my daughter loves!</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie Xavier</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiTfGOK5ISaVegNDmiADYzrOiPhVaYnOEGs6w8yd2ZXXItbif2ShSC69YFuZeTl04BXaf940F87Yro44ktW2KwaL8vwTF8bnk9LUMSMMgelpAVcbNs5FfBPPhWuZzNXmgEnLTJ2w/s999/Photo_1626458562672.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;"><img border="0" data-original-height="576" data-original-width="999" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiTfGOK5ISaVegNDmiADYzrOiPhVaYnOEGs6w8yd2ZXXItbif2ShSC69YFuZeTl04BXaf940F87Yro44ktW2KwaL8vwTF8bnk9LUMSMMgelpAVcbNs5FfBPPhWuZzNXmgEnLTJ2w/s320/Photo_1626458562672.png" width="320" /></span></a></div></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-9256297750587257472021-07-13T23:24:00.000+05:302021-07-13T23:24:40.590+05:30A Rainy Day<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">There,</span></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">above those tall, old trees,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and beyond reckoning,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">you will find resolution,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">answers to those equations </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">with aspirations of grandeur.<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">The myth sings,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">there is a cloud over there, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">born with you, for you.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">It keeps your due,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">some dew, a poem</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and a bit more rain drops.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">Those drops you will need,<br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">you would crave,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">and chase in uneven spurts,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">with ironed out emotions,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">for you are seeking solace </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">to wash it all off when it matters least.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3; font-size: x-large;">My cloud hovers there, I see,<br />and it rains here this morning.<br /><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: #f3f3f3;">-- Leslie Xavier</span><br /><br /></span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; color: #222222; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0jJMuqVXHdSWEe9yoQ4lKuPdTzslwQwqSpLRvagkHU1nZFtpnwmvsT1Hulzh7Wn61Thhm8hdeOC7X06odsQqZ3WtyvR73b0nbJubSno273tJbr42bkhWo3lAIHAS8HeS3A1uZUg/s999/Photo_1626198471243.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="726" data-original-width="999" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0jJMuqVXHdSWEe9yoQ4lKuPdTzslwQwqSpLRvagkHU1nZFtpnwmvsT1Hulzh7Wn61Thhm8hdeOC7X06odsQqZ3WtyvR73b0nbJubSno273tJbr42bkhWo3lAIHAS8HeS3A1uZUg/s320/Photo_1626198471243.png" width="320" /></a></div></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-15666400117882632132021-07-10T00:12:00.002+05:302021-07-10T00:12:45.104+05:30Ode to the Dancing Tree<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">If it sways</span></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">in tune with the wind,<br />I would call it a tree</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">with conviction...</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Toward the music in the storm,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">the rhythm in the dust</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">it kicks up,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">our powdered egos.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Oh, indeed what we need</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">is conviction, a bit of honesty.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">The world craves such follies,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">to save itself from radios,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">and speeches of bearded supremos,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Sundays, weekdays, every day,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">while we seek corners where </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">there is music, and also some silence.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">The trees have stopped their dance,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">the wind is but a tired labourer</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">trudging home,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">after a toil for relevance.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">It is monsoon, </span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">but these seasons hardly matter.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Yet we long for the rush,</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">some melody, and some stillness.</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie Xavier</span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipLC_Z8w-PM2OQHiSE7B04i822Yta5pRB9qVL_EN7l_IJFFlG9N6sCiZYatWWXSVzLbFM-ZmAHYTpHkxI2p1U7Yl_wmSuSSV32A2_0x10hPAoSUjqV39hligaaa_8DhrZ1-L9vEQ/s969/Photo_1625854764520%257E2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="623" data-original-width="969" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipLC_Z8w-PM2OQHiSE7B04i822Yta5pRB9qVL_EN7l_IJFFlG9N6sCiZYatWWXSVzLbFM-ZmAHYTpHkxI2p1U7Yl_wmSuSSV32A2_0x10hPAoSUjqV39hligaaa_8DhrZ1-L9vEQ/s320/Photo_1625854764520%257E2.png" width="320" /></a></div><br /></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36017051.post-71827746693103737762021-07-07T19:53:00.000+05:302021-07-07T19:53:22.782+05:30Songs From My Backyard<div style="text-align: left;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Some stayed back,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">oh well, they </span>remain grounded,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">unambitious<span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">,</span> <span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">yet</span> happy<br /></span><div dir="auto"><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">among fallen mango leaves</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">in my backyard,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">circa 1994...</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Oh, how the memory fails<span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">,</span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">rots,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">becomes compost for trees</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">like those long buried leaves.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">The</span> tunes<span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">, though,</span> play true<span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">,</span> fresh;</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">sweat in the humid sun, alive;</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">and </span>make <span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">my daughter</span> sway</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">while</span> leaves fall still in denial.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">Am I in denial too,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">or is it just the lyrical irony</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">in </span>poems who forgot they're songs,</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">and chose <span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;">earth,</span></span></div><div><span class="gmail_default" style="font-family: georgia, serif;"><span style="font-size: x-large;">and an eternal flux defending</span></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">ethical dilemmas and carnal absolutes.</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;">-- Leslie Xavier</span></div><div dir="auto"><span style="font-size: x-large;"><br /></span></div><div dir="auto"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaFfXYeY3p49QUpnwc61vt8sDkuvKfc428mSnhPSi7TKI_-d_kQmDsKyZO7D0IvX1AbOPya04I2yqea3k4gUrp6StUVFf8_tqiDMGrEXx-vUGsMsUqOaUzfP0ZOcoJwuf2v5PScA/s1074/turntable_Music_gramophone.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="634" data-original-width="1074" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaFfXYeY3p49QUpnwc61vt8sDkuvKfc428mSnhPSi7TKI_-d_kQmDsKyZO7D0IvX1AbOPya04I2yqea3k4gUrp6StUVFf8_tqiDMGrEXx-vUGsMsUqOaUzfP0ZOcoJwuf2v5PScA/s320/turntable_Music_gramophone.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div></div></div>Thought-Leshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10237793982612415015noreply@blogger.com0