The Poetry Marathon

She was rejected again and again
By every music company, by every music competition
But she continued playing her violin
Sometimes in the park, other times outside the temples
Today she sat in a deserted garden, closing eyes and
Playing the violin until her fingers bled
A homeless who regularly napped there, rushed to her
Why do you play it till your fingers and heart bleed?
“Because if wounds and hurt had a voice, they would be violins…”

In shadows deep, the lone banyan tree shakes its branches
A haunting breath whispers secrets deep
Amidst the silence of the night, they duet a death dance
The owl in the nearby tree traps its prey
A ghost of memories silently weep
A realm of dreams; their secrets keep
The sun rises, the night is gone and all is well
Until it is night again…

A twisty tube of a shock of colours
They swirl and bend; the mirrors and glass, partner in tandem
And at every turn
A new perspective, a new world
I shake the kaleidoscope again and again
Until I become fluid and I find my heart in the kaleidoscope…

Hour 10; What is love, pray?

“What is love, Amma?”, asked my five-year old
I stopped the train of sick thoughts
And complaints and lamentations
That were steadily building in my brain
Lodged themselves there, permanently
I paused, I must have looked stupefied
For she ran to me, put her hands around me, ” Amma ok?”
Not ok, I thought for I had allowed everything else in my life
Except love; when did this happen?
Scooping her in my arms, I whispered,
“What is love? Love is not beating yourself up
For not being perfect and waiting perfectly for when it will be spring again!
Laughing at her confused face, I scooped her up in my arms,
” Love is kissing my baby a hundred times!
And I could feel her pretty giggles and love spreading across my humble and messy home…

Dear college counsellor mam
This letter is to inform you that I have failed all my tests yet again
I truly regret and repent
Promise to pass in the next semester
And O! I am sorry I have to beg to state that I am gay
I also beg to stress
That I am together with your son
Our days are rad and nights delicious
Do visit us in our pg sometime…

He was walking down his street peacefully
It was just another day
The same old monotonous day
But he liked the sameness, the luxury of normalcy
At his age, he valued a day lacking stress and excitement
He adjusted his walking stick and continued walking
Thud! A bright red football missed his ear by inches
The owner of the football was a chubby four-year old
Who had ‘trouble’ written all over him
” Grandpa, I am your new neighbor,”
The boy announced in a cute sing-song voice
Grandpa felt a tiny wave of anxiety sweep over him
This meant bidding goodbye to a ‘normal, same-old day’ goodbye
The boy kicked the ball to him, Grandpa could smell his adrenaline rush
He remembered himself in his green and yellow school jersey
He sighed. He smiled.
“Let’s go, boy!”

I have always loved the closet
Even as a child, I felt drawn to it
Not for me laughter and light
But only the warmth and darkness of the closet
I felt safe, away from prying eyes and judgemental stares
But as I grew up, I realized
Hiding away is a coward’s choice
And so, one bright sunny day
I opened the closet and walked out of it
I embraced the brightness and allowed the light to warm my soul
Ah! Should have done this sooner
The closet is my safe place but the world my playground!

“You ~f…..~ bitch, you are not welcome
Only respectable people live here”
She heard them and looked one last time
At that house that she had once called home
She felt tempted to show them ~her middle finger~
The Respectable respect they spoke about
Was sacrificed at the the altar of her vagina
For even as meagre as a rupees hundred
Every single day, every single hour, night after night!

Hour 13

“I am a writer”, I tell them
“That’s great” they smile
But they still ask what my profession is!
And so, I started teaching

I stood inside the classroom
Books and chalk in hand
I was greeted by chaos and paper planes

I tried teaching them english and math
But they had different plans
They taught me life is not easy!

They ran around the class
Doodled my caricatures and
Sang loudly when the principal was passing by

But the day, I really opened my heart
And bent my ideals to match their innocence
And sang and danced with them
We became one class; Class 3A

Amidst the mayhem, we found laughter and camaraderie
I felt fortunate to witness
Young minds taking flight
I became a learner too
I learnt teaching is a comedy show
But what a show!

1. I am like a lotus leaf, Water can fall on me but cannot touch me like
Adversities can attack me but can never break my spirit

2. Our earth is not flat
But heck! It is hollow and nothing
And no one can deter me from changing
My mind on this; it is hollow that hides terrible secrets like secret of life, cavemen and all those things
That have disappeared from our world…

4. She lost her eyes in a freak accident years ago
Her family was inconsolable
But they need not have worried
For she saw the world with her ears
She heard and sifted the different sounds of the world
And her ears made her see who was who
And which was which…

5. Srivalli Ramana Raghavenda Chegu
Lived in the temple town of Kanchipuram
He woke up with the sun
And waited patiently out the famous Iyer’s idly shop
For how would the day bode well
Until you sat on the wooden benches
And drowned your Kanchipuram idlies in sambar
And gulped it down your gullet!

7. She was blind and helpless and adamant and gauche
Though her teacher taught her to use her other senses
She was adamant; she would use only the eyes that had no light, no hope…