The Poetry Marathon

Hour 6, Prompt 14, Year 2021

When I wake up in the morning I turn and look at you
Sleeping, head resting on left bent arm
With a smile on your face
A pure, sweet smile
Devoid of any worries of the day
The same smile I noticed when we first met
A welcoming smile when you introduced yourself
The same smile you have when we dance together
Me in your arms, no place either of us would rather be
The smile that cracks open quickly when there’s good news
And slowly when I need some cheering up
The same smile, a smile of comfort, of peace
We’ve had our share of ups and downs
But I know I can always count on that smile
The smile that never fails me when I need it
That warms my heart more than my morning coffee
And as my heart brims over with warmth and love
I imagine my future children
I know this is the smile I want them to have

Hour 5, Prompt 13, Year 2021

I lay coughing in my bed at night
The same routine as had been for several months
But somehow, today felt different
As always, I was surrounded by children, grandchildren, great grandchildren
Trying to cheer me up and waiting on my every need
But inside, I felt
Colder, darker, quieter
I knew it was time

Earlier, I had reluctantly said goodnight to my family
My eldest daughter had just turned fifty
And I had another great-grandchild on the way
Of course I didn’t tell them that I knew
That it was time
But it wasn’t enough time
It wasn’t enough time
It wasn’t enough time

Whoosh! The wind picked up speed, almost shattering my window
A mist formed in the room
The windows were closed so it wasn’t the fog
It was time
The mist slowly solidified to a silhouette
Exactly how I had imagined Death would be
Now the silhouette had arms, legs, a body
And finally, the face

But what’s this? Not a wrinkle on this face
I had always thought Death would be an old curmudgeon
Just like me
But here I saw a young boy
Gaunt, inexperienced face, translucent arms and legs
Mouth puckered in adolescent sulkiness
Similar to the sulkiness of age
But different nevertheless

“Who are you then?” I said to him
“Well, The Grim Reaper, who else?” said he
“You’re but a boy,” I shot back
I had nothing to fear if it was time
“A boy I am indeed,” he said to me
“But I’ve been dead for 90 years.
I was killed as a teenager and asked to serve
As the Grim Reaper for a century.”

“The gods choose us every century
Those of us who are sharp of mind
But don’t fit in with the world they are born in.
Then, without telling us, they kill us
And bring us to serve our sentence.
My turn is almost done now
And as I near my eternal vacation
I think of how it would have been
If I had grown to this age while alive.”

He picked up his scythe and carved the air
A white passageway now opened
As he led me through it my body felt light
Devoid of all weakness and cough
I looked at his young unweathered face
And I thought of the life I had lived
Milestone after milestone flashed in front of my eyes
And made me smile as I departed

I knew it was time
It was the right time

Hour 4, Prompt 12, Year 2021

There is a flying thing in the sky
Is it a bird? Is it a plane?
Could it be aliens?
Watching us from above
Not far but not close
Studying us
Waiting for
Us to
End.

Hour 3, Prompt 11, Year 2021

It’s a warm summer day in Lilliput
The perfect day to use yellows
Gulliver splashes some yellow on white
Picks up his straw and blows
Behold! A beautiful canvas
Just a shape of yellow
Simple, like the Lilliputians themselves

Right there lie his headphones and his magnifying glass
Never used since he washed ashore on this land
This land that is nowhere on the map of his world
Where the people themselves are as big as these gadgets
Gadgets of another place, another time

But behold! A bicycle out of nowhere
A laughing child tips over the bottle of green paint
One color becomes two – yellow and green
Not unlike the flowers on his desk
Flowers from the King himself

A coincidence? A charm? An anomaly?
Well at the very least, it isn’t a surprise
Just another oddity in the land of Lilliput

“Well, goodbye now!” the child says
He parks his bike and struts away
No hint of fear on his face
They’ve all grown used to him by now

Gulliver chuckles as the child walks on
What is a work table for him
Is a massive wooden path for the child
Despite their different sizes and stages
It is a canvas for both
A bright golden opportunity to explore the unknown

Hour 2, Prompt 10, Year 2021

He wakes up with the rising sun
But there is no work to be done
His trade is closed because the week has come
To liberate the god Saturn

He heads down to the town square
A person of every type is there
Rich and poor, dark and fair
Singing through the cold December air

He buys a candle, and some cake
On his shoulder, he feels a sharp shake
A Saturnalicus Princeps with a grinning face
Knocks him down, his wares he takes

But oh well, that’s how things go down
At the end of the year in this Roman town
When you meet with loved ones and laugh at clowns
Till this year ends, and the next one is crowned

She wakes up with the rising sun
In a time different from the one above
The Christmas music has begun
Her work for the year is fully done

She heads down to the living room
And unlike the outdoor winter gloom
Everyone is in a joyous mood
Setting out heaps and heaps of food

When they’re happily, merrily, extremely drunk
They begin playing White Elephant
But as soon as she gets a new coffee mug
It’s her brother’s turn, and away it is swung

But oh well, that’s how things go down
At the end of the year across cities and towns
As they have every century, every single aeon
Till this year ends, and the next one is crowned

Hour 1, Prompt 9, Year 2021

Never say never
Because you know not what tomorrow brings
Because this may be the last time you can see someone
Or the last time you can visit a place

Never say never
Because tomorrow may be the end of our everyday
Of mornings, of nights, of beautiful sights
Of movement, of diversity, of life itself

Never say never
Because 250 million years ago, dinosaurs, not humans, ruled the world
Until one day, they were brought to their knees
While earth, space, and universe plowed on

So never say never, and live in the moment
Because time is a beast of its own
It compresses and shifts and upturns with no warning
Changing our world in unimaginable ways

I grew up in New Delhi, India, in a house and family where reading was really encouraged. Growing up, there wasn’t a free moment when I didn’t have a book in my hand. Soon enough, I began to imagine my own stories. Images became words, then sentences, then full pieces of writing. As a child, I published poems in the local school magazine, and eventually, in my adolescent years, I wrote and published several short stories and a full length novel.

In my adulthood, it has been increasingly difficult to find the time and dedication to write – among the milestones of college, a demanding first job, and now graduate school. But whenever I do write, it never fails to elicit the sweetest of emotions. The beauty of an initial idea. The thrill of finding just the right word to fit a line. The satisfaction of looking at a finished product that I, uniquely, have created and shared with the world.

The Poetry (Half) Marathon gives me an opportunity to collectively experience the joy of writing with a community all over the world. This is the third time I am participating and similar to last year, my boyfriend and I will be doing it together. We’re down in Paso Robles, California for the weekend, surrounded by beautiful vineyards, sunny weather, and our indispensable laptops. We’re excited to channel all our creativity and undertake this journey together, and with the rest of you.

Good luck to everyone who is starting out now, and keep it up for those of you who have been braving this for the last 8 hours! Will see you on the other side!

Moon of the Dawn

As the skies turn light
The half moon says its last goodbye
But my moon’s here with me

Prompt 23 (Half Marathon 2 Hour 11) 

Chhoti never left the room with the toys

As a child, I was jealous of her

For if I had my way, I would be there all day too

Yet I was bound by rules and school, and she was not

When I told my parents, they were dismissive

They apologized for not giving me real siblings

But Chhoti was real

It was our little secret

Ten years later

A girl is now a woman

Toys are forgotten in favor of clothes and makeup

The home  is no longer the most fun place to be

So the room with the toys lies gathering

And with it lies Chhoti

Prompt 22 (Half Marathon 2 Hour 10)

The water is freezing but there is nowhere else she feels more at home
Definitely not back at the villa
There, she is a daughter, soon to be wife
An aristocrat, a woman, one of age
Here, she is nothing but pure flesh
A tiny body in the vast sea

She swims under the arched rock
The sea cave, her sister and she used to call it
When the tide was low, they would race around in it for hours
Fearless in the water, in a way they could not be on land

It was perhaps with this fearlessness
That her sister entered the water that fateful day
Knowing she would never return
Even now, occasionally, when she swims, she senses subtle changes in the current
Reminiscent of her sister’s spirit, perhaps lurking in the cave
Their one safe haven

Should she join her sister? Is it worth going back?
To a life she does not wish to lead
She stops moving her arms for a moment, a fleeting moment
The water rapidly begins to dissolve her in its darkness
But wait, the light changed
Instinctively, she rises
She is now on the other side of the sea cave
Staring into the vast sea beyond

The metaphor hits her as hard as the waves
With new found strength, she fights
Pushing herself back to the shore
She steps on land, dries herself, and puts on her corset
This. Is not home.
But someday it could be