Flight of Hope

Hope hovers, unsure if she is welcome,
I hold her at once close and yet far,
Stay! I tell her, don't go!

But let no dreams turn false today,
In fact, I tell her,
Better it is that I don't dream at all.

But dreams do come, wishes and desires multiply,
And I dream of soaring in the sky,
But then the demons of fear dance and shout,
They yell, "Ha! Ha! Ha! You'll fall to the ground!"

And then I look at Hope,
With pleading, beseeching eyes
Begging her, "Tell me, I won't!"
But she won't.

All she offers is an embrace,
An empty one I feel, with no assurances,
And therefore I reject.

But when she turns to leave,
I ask her to stay.

And she stays, at once near and at once far,
Her arms still open and empty,
Waiting for me should I ask for help.

And at the time of reckoning,
When the demons shout louder, willing me to fall,
Hope embraces me,
And in that instant, I am Hope, and Hope is me,
The demonic voices grow smaller and the dancing stops,
I take wings and soar freely in clear skies.

Faded Beauty, Wider Smiles

Her beauty faded away,
Is compensated with wider smiles,
Smiles that do not reach the eyes,
Smiles that only accentuate,
The harsh reality of absent beauty.

Hands held on the hips,
Her walk is jauntier
Than the younger ones,
Hoping to attract somebody.

They come and they see,
The walk they admire, the hips too,
Then they see the face
And turn away with disgust.

The smile becomes smaller and vanishes,
Lips tremble and the tears come,
They glimmer before being hurriedly wiped away.
She knows that lack of beauty would repel many,
Tears would repel all.

But the eyes, those damn eyes,
They show her desperation
And as she turns them skyward,
Her lips whisper a silent prayer,
'Dear God, I do not want to be hungry tonight,
Lust, I can handle, poverty I can,
The jeers of all the world is manageable,
But... hunger isn't'

She waits for a sign,
A sign of being heard,
A sign that all will be well,
But the clouded sky gives nothing away.

Down the street,
She hears drunken laughter,
And she sees the unsteady walk,
She senses wandering eyes that ask,
"Is pleasure on sale tonight?"

Her beauty faded away
Is compensated by wider smiles,
Smiles that do not reach the eyes,
Smiles that only accentuate,
The harsh reality of absent beauty…

A requiem for What Matters Most Part 1

Some time back, I had posted an entry on what matters most.

It seems that my thought processes are not unique. Most Indians think like me.

Attached is the proof:

1) google.co.in screenshots for most popular searches with the term 'removing'


2) what does the world think? well lets try the same search on google.com



Need I say more?