The Poetry Marathon

Dubai. The land that has my brother,

my idol, my hero, my friend

a three hour flight

short yet so long

crossing boundaries

reuniting with the man who taught me

how to laugh, to fight, to be strong

once we shared the same roof

danced on every new song

played games, talked, even wrestled

mundane moments, filled with joy,

but now life has taken different paths

and he is miles apart.

Each flight is a rerun of memories

of stories, laughter, tears we shared

I flip through the movies on the cramped plane.

knowing exactly the ones he’d pick

I observe the people on board

like we always did,

I giggle at the inside jokes now never made

and wait for the wait to get over.

I land, the airport now familiar,

he is there, like always,

I rush into his loving arms,

I know I am grown now, a happy wife and doting mother,

but in this embrace, I am still a little child,

In this embrace, I am back home.

We nurtured you,

gave you our very souls,

you are because we are,

Yet you ungrateful wretches

destroy, and kill us without abandon

never pausing to think that the air

you breathe is a gift from us

We treated you like children

and you turned on us

long we have kept quiet

given you chances to redeem yourself

but the time has come to cut the cord

to take a step back and watch you chase your doom

for as we disappear so will you

and won’t that be glorious?

-Prachi S

The world disappears and

sounds are silenced as

my head submerges,

eyes open to a different world.

I am aware of each breath,

aware of every part of my body

I push myself forward

all outside things are muted now, small,

My anxiety comes of with each stroke and

my panic, my worries simply ebb away,

In this moment, for this hour, I am just me

completely blissful in the water’s caress.

Unlucky in love I’ve always been,
Invisible to all the women I’ve held dear,
But I’m a romantic – what can I do?
One day, I’ll surely meet my lover.

I may have even met her already,
I wonder if Susan is ‘The One’,
Or will Cupid fail me yet again,
The way he did with Sharon.

And Tara, and Sammy and Nicole.
Each time my heart had fluttered,
Each time I had had sleepless nights,
But each time ‘NO’ they had uttered.

But Susan, I feel, will look past my awkwardness,
She does smile at me after all,
Hopefully she’ll see my devotion, my loyalty,
And for once, someone will accept me being an oddball.

Today is the day I’ll finally do it,
Find courage to ask her on a date,
I’m positive she’ll say a ‘Yes’ to my request,
I’m sure she will realize I am her soulmate.

I grab a dozen lilies – her favourite,
And make my way towards her front door,
God I hope she says yes,
There are only so many bodies my little basement can store.

-Prachi S

The rain drops fall like nostalgic music,

Echoing the laughter of the past,

The excited giggles, the rushing to the terrace,

The present stillness – such a sharp contrast.

Our little hands clasped onto dad’s fingers,

Our tiny feet splashing in the puddles,

Hours spent getting drenched in the rain,

Ending with shivering, but, warm cuddles.

The chilly wind wafts in the smell of the earth,

My room becomes a time machine,

Ah! Those lazy mornings and midnight binges,

And all those moments that fell in between.

But change is a constant we all bear,

Now miles apart – I do wonder,

The people I grew up with are so far away,

Are all those moments now truly over?

“MOOOOM!” screams my daughter as she bounds in,

Animatedly pointing to the torrent outside,

Before I know it she’s pulled me to the terrace,

Cheering as the rains intensify.

She jumps and splashes water on me,

I too become a child with my mischievous elf,

Her tiny hands clasp my fingers tightly,

I smile as history repeats itself.

We play, we dance, we slide, we squeal,

It never really gets over, there is no end,

My siblings are probably doing the same elsewhere,

Rains make the past and present walk hand in hand.

-Prachi S

Alone at sea,

Not even a star in the sky

Floating without direction,

Just the waves to abide by.

Everything is dark,

Even the compass is broken,

The lonely vessel bobs about,

Empty, abandoned, forsaken.

Maybe it had a glorious past,

Maybe it belonged to royalty,

Or it was a pirate ship,

Striking terror with its notoriety.

But nobody knows for sure,

The vessel’s a long-forgotten story,

It is no longer worthy of memory,

It didn’t deserve a place in history.

Alone at sea,

Not even a star in the sky,

One day it will sink to the bottom,

And no one will care that it died.

Father was livid, his anger radiating heat where he stood,

Hunger fueled his rage further,

Making him snap his teeth, bellowing

he would no longer be just an observer.

She’d stolen now thrice,

This wily intruder in our cozy cottage,

A brat, an insolent scoundrel,

Her grubby hands always ready to forage.

But no more, no Sir!

Will our porridge she steal,

She had to pay the price,

So, we made her our meal.

Her eyes were in the soup,

Her roasted torso was our hearty dinner,

Her limbs are wrapped for later use,

Her golden locks lie strewn in a corner.

‘Oh Captain! My Captain!’

A sleepover, best friends, HBO, movie, cheese balls and chocolate,

And a line that made them laugh and cry,

Robbie Williams magic, the hold of his voice,

Scurried into the heart of a young writer,

As she hung onto his every word for he had a way of

Making her feel special, her talent validated,

He gave power to all the words that seemed to pour out of her,

He made her a dreamer, gave her hope,

She held her head a little bit higher,

Because of all those words he spoke.

He taught her better than any teacher she’d ever had.

-Prachi S

I have made plans all my life,

Charted all my moves, prepared for possible falls,

Made lists of all my ideas

and stuffed drawers with a necessary supplies and more,

Had daydreams of celebrated successes,

and have given mock interviews in the bathroom,

I’ve stood still too long, staring at the beginning,

It’s time to take a step, to walk, to run,

I’ve dithered long enough, dreamed long enough,

Reality – here I come!

We gather around the living room,

Cards in our hands, laughter in the air,

Freshly roasted peanuts, everyone’s favorite,

their aroma wafts, tempting.

Snippets of conversations from politics to rising humidity,

A slap without bite stinging on my thigh – a price for teasing,

the hard floor comfortable beneath us,

Mum and brother arguing over game points.

Aunt fussing over my hairdo and my cousin egging her on,

movie dialogues thrown dramatically in the mix,

Mum humming an old song.

The heat, insufferable, yet welcoming,

I feel light, this is home.