UNLUCKY 13th LUCKY FOR US

M....U...U...U...U...M...S,





Luck unfolded that very day when your tender hands held mine with an extraordinary warmth. Ours is a relationship that had its roots on the 13th of December. It has been a lovely journey since then. Its a special day for us but happily none of the other days have been one shade less special, so today I am truly not celebrating the 13th but our enigmatic relationship over the years.



Going down the memory lane, I feel happy. I can see you at the school gate, me waiting for you in a rickshaw with a black forest pastry. How you would enticingly feast on it from my hands. The simplicities of life giving us magnanimous delight that can have no substitute. How I would feed you lunch after you would be back from an exam and how I would go till the board of our lane longing to see you coming back from college flashing your sweet smile. I am happier as nothing has changed in our relationship. We still share that closeness and that is what makes me dance when you come back from office now. From school to college to office has been quite a TIME but it has all been captured into one MOMENT.....our togetherness.



Sometimes I have a catch in my heart. Soon you will be away from me after your wedding. I cannot imagine this house without your presence, without your touch, without your care and concern and then tears choke me as I know....THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER YOU AGAIN.



M...U...U...U...U...M...S its very difficult to fathom this phase of my life where I wish to see you settled yet feel unsettled at the thought that you will not be around. Every dawn is special for me as I wake up to your charming ways. Everyday is a thanksgiving day for me.



What you are to me is impossible to put across. Today particularly I know what a rainbow is. You are my rainbow when my days are shrouded with anxiety. You have grown up to give me back all that I have given you. How will I manage to live without the comfort of your caring ways. I surrender before you as these feelings cross my mind and unnerve me.



People reading this letter may be confused as to why I addressed you as MUMS. Thats the best part of our bonding where as a mother I helped you to grow and now as a mature adult you mother me instead. There is such magic in our ways that you understand what all I have to say when I just sms M...u...u...u...u...m...s. You know I am saying .........when will you come home, how long will you sit in office, i am missing you, i am getting angry and where are you. There is no need of being so explicit when you understand everything without having to say. With you I can be my true self. I can transform myself from an adult and speak incoherently like a kid, jump around like a squirrel and tell you that I will reach home in 596 mins and 75 hours.... a LINGO you can relate to so well by now. An enchanting spark connects us that makes me word your thoughts and then you hug me and say...."Mamma how do you come to know what I have to say and how Mamma everytime, just how?" Some questions remain unanswered as they have a deeper connection in some other life. I believe in this and feel happy that our souls have found each other in this mystical world and LET US REJOICE THIS DAY AND THIS SPECIAL UNION.



With lots of love and much more than you can wish for yourself.



Mamma (ONLY YOUR MAMMA FOREVER)

DEFINING LOVE..........................

EKTI KOTHAI LIKHE JABO...............................

SHUDHU JIBONER LIPIKA TE................................

TUMI JE AMAR, TUMI JE AMAR OGO........................

AAJ NOY OGO BUJHBE SHEDIN...................................

ROHIBE JEDIN EKA.



How else could a Bengali define love. The lines of this soul stirring song says it all. Even as an English Teacher I feel incompetent to translate these lines that embody subtle emotions of true love; yet let me try....................

" WILL WRITE DOWN JUST ONE THING........................

ON MY LIFE'S NOTE PAD.............................................

YOU ARE MINE, THAT YOU ARE MINE...............................

NOT TODAY BUT SOMEDAY YOU WILL REALISE THIS..............

WHEN YOU WILL BE LEFT TO STAY WITHOUT ME.


It was twilight. Two people from diametrically opposite worlds were meeting after a long spell. The only common thing between them was the love that swelled in their hearts.He walked in and knew it all reading her eyes. When you dont need to spell out things ... IT IS LOVE. She was battling a pain of neglect that was inflicted on her by him. He caressed her hand and in that very caress everything was vividly clear. He did not have to say he loved her, he did not have to say he was sorry for the uncaring attitude...... She did not have to say it was an unbearable wait. Their hands talked. cried, cajoled and united them in the true spirit of love.
THIS IS HOW I DEFINE LOVE.

There was an eerie silence for a long time. There was an unrest in her heart and unknowingly she found herself in an embrace she couldnt logically unravel. LOVE DOES NOT GO WITH LOGIC. He held her close yet no words were spoken. UNSAID THINGS ARE EMPOWERED WITH BETTER EXPRESSIONS. It wasnt deemed perhaps for him to hold her so close yet love is the strongest emotion that makes you surrender to the riot in your heart. Your heart says....UNVEIL THE DEEPEST FEELINGS AND JUST ENJOY THE MOMENT WITHOUT ANY REGRETS. And why regret at all ?? It wasnt a sexual encounter. ITS LOVING EACH OTHER BEYOND REALITY.

Her tears streamed down. His body trembled as he wished to soothe her with a kiss. And then softly he kissed her eyes wiping away all the tears. Both did not speak as even without words they were reaching out to each other. THIS IS HOW I DEFINE LOVE. Love is the comfort you feel in a hug, the pain that tugs at your heart, It is the magic that makes you surrender to a kiss that takes in all the droplets of HURT from your teary eyes. Most importantly it is the longing in each others eyes when you are amidst many people. Oh what a beautiful feeling is LOVE. You dont need to enjoy the climax of SEX if you have experienced TRUE LOVE that makes you belong to each other when you know you actually dont.

Love is to nurse a HOST OF MEMORIES that no rooted reality can make you part with. TRUE LOVE IS SHEER ECSTACY. It grants you its share of agonising pain but there is a sweetness even in that pain where YOU MAKE A DIFFERENCE IN SOMEONES LIFE TILL ETERNITY.

Love is synonymous to TELEPATHY. Yearn for someone who has no possibilities to return and believe in your feelings. You just watch and see how the soul etched in your body moves out stealthily to magnetically bring forth the person you have desired. And then will dawn upon you the FINAL and the ULTIMATE definition of LOVE.

LOVE IS DIVINE AS LOVE IS CREATED IN OUR HEARTS BY THE LORD AND SOMETIMES THESE UNNATURAL HAPPENINGS IN YOUR LIFE WILL CONVINCE YOU THAT YOU WERE DESTINED TO BE SO CLOSE AS IT WAS GOD'S DECISION.

A PERFECT MATCH

It was a real long wait...............



Till she found her soulmate.



God reserves his choicest blessings..............



For people who possess the best of things.



A lady par excellence is SHE...............



A man with the right chemistry is HE.



He- an academician of renown...............



With accolades that humbly crown.



She- a dedicated teacher......................



A simple and honest preacher.



Thats how it clicked over the net..............



The tech savvy world is a great boon I bet.



There is celebration in the air................



To honour this loving pair.



On Christmas Eve, may the angels sing...........



For thats when their wedding bells will ring.



Lets wish them well , rejoice and pray...........



As they turn Husband and Wife that day.



Connecting the dots forward, the LORD will guard..........



And BLISS will be written on every card.

MY UNROMANTIC HUSBAND...................

Adjectives adorn a personality and can mar it too. Well, the only negatively used ‘describing word’ which I can probably mention at rampant for the man of my life is ‘UNROMANTIC’. An honest confession……… it has caused me many a tear, yet he emerges victorious and steals away the crown and truly is a majestic husband.

My man is different from the others not because he is tall and stands out but because his ways have been stupendous. He may not be the one who would bowl me out with an enchanting dance or send violets or light some candles over a dinner and steal a rapturous kiss, yet he has made himself to the victory stand for his unmatched ways. As a lover he stood by me, honoured me for what I was and married me against all odds. I thought he had given me everything that I could ask for. On marrying this man I found he was always wanting to light up my life despite the trials and tribulations of his journey to professional success. An understanding man who wanted me to be well educated, who never wanted me to waste my talent at home. I can never forget the early days of marriage as it does not mean only honeymoon days for me. It reminds of a supportive husband who smiled away over a badly cooked dinner and even would take a generous helping just to put me at ease. A husband who would understand my woes of parting from my mother and would personally go and get her to enliven my life. A husband who would monitor like a grandfather whether I was taking good care of my very own mother. It does talk about a splendid person in him.

As a twenty two year old, on so many occasions I opened the door to welcome him back to a home where things were all upset as I would get stiff bored of house chores. An energetic man and the loving husband would spring to action settling the house and soon I learnt how to turn it into a home from him. He is perhaps energy personified. A man who could wear a smile even after a hectic train journey of two nights without reservation which he once took up by choice just to be with me. He was more than happy to be home. A man who can drive any distance to pick me up from somewhere as my comfort has always been his priority.

My beloved husband could start for work comfortably at 9 in the morning but would set off with me at 7 itself with a happy feeling that he would drive me safe to my school where I was a teacher then. I would have to get up early at 5 to finish off the cooking and with the alarm clock he would flash a smile and enjoy the bed tea. Trust me never, ever complained of having to get up in the wee hours of the morning. On the contrary would be upset if I wouldn’t call him. Strange it sounds right as I call him my unromantic husband.

Well he is a far cry from romance. He probably is a loving man who craves for togetherness. If that can be defined as romance then I have had a share of romance in my life. My sagittarian husband does not understand the lingo of romance perhaps but has done magnanimous things that people would shudder to do. On knowing that I was going through the pains of being childless he would assert that he was not fond of children. And then when he learnt I was wanting to adopt a ten year old girl who wished to be mine he never questioned. He did it for me and my smiles. And let me come to the highest honour I can credit him with. HE LOVES HIS DAUGHTER TO DISTRACTION. All this has been possible only for his unbound love for me. He proved it with sincerity that love means sacrifice. I will be undermining his efforts if I sit and list out his sacrifices. It’s just for my readers to understand.

Together we have battled the unending struggles we had to meet up with. We have also had our share of bitter moments yet the happy moments surely weighed more . Sometimes my friends teasingly question how I hooked this man, so disturbingly good looking. My mind then wanders back to the distant days of the past when we fell in love without a reason. Probably that’s why till date we do not reason out things and stay on as HUSBAND and WIFE despite our differences.

Dear husband, the bridge on which we tread years back is still strong celebrating and bringing alive the moments when you confessed your love for me. It has lasted long enough for us to explore the changing times. We are ancient now, we have drowned our youth and are turning grey but our silence speaks more than words. With open arms I welcome the days ahead…… a romantic desire to hold your trembling hands, to feel your wrinkled skin, matching it out with mine and still wanting to care, wanting to be MAN and WOMAN till we are lost in the oblivion.

MY MEAGRE WOMB

My beloved daughter, although not my flesh and blood came into my life to give birth to the mother in me.My life was in a dormant sleep and she pulled at the chords of my motherhood and proved it to everybody including me ..." WHAT GOOD ARE LEGALITIES WHEN THE HEART YEARNS FOR SOMEONE." My meagre womb can never match BHAVANA. She is deemed to be greater than it. I never gave her my share of milk but she has come to return the love in manifold. She is my own being , my very own existence.......a love that has enveloped my life in absolute bliss.There was a phase in my life when I went through the turmoil of being childless.Probably at that time she was waiting an unbearable wait for me to recognise her soul and understand that she was mine even in the eerie silence of my womb. Her voice calling me MAMMA fondles my dream to that of a starry night. Her sight caresses my soul.She has walked into my life like a princess and adorned me with the melodies of motherhood...........Time stood still and bliss set in as I unravelled the treasure in mothering a child who had come from the land of unknown to assure me that she was always mine.She came to teach me that love isnt just a beautiful word. Beyond this syllable is a wonderful feeling .And that is what BHAVANA, the hindi connotation of the word implies and that is exactly what BHAVANA is all about.Sketching out with a brush I could just put across at one stroke that she is a MIRACLE.

As i hold her in an affectionate embrace her eyes close as peace prevails.I will not allow anyone to trade this serenity that soothes her heart yet I have to snap this unseen umbilical cord that connects us and give her up to the man of her dreams. That day I will be giving my all. A mother having a daughter would only be able to relate to this sentiment. What it costs to give away her fairy , her doll to someone unknown , someone who wouldnt even know her child's silent joys, wishes and tears.

As I take every breath a silent prayer rises above. I place it at the altar with a mother's conviction that my daughter is going to get the best in this life .You cant ask me why, for love is never about logic and reasoning. I just create that belief in my soul and drive my apprehensions away. There is no end to wanting for your child when you are a mother.Sometimes I look ahead beyond this life. I can see a new chapter unfolding. Subtle emotions cross my mind as I gear up for the next phase of my life. A day that holds promises for my child, a day when she will be far away from me , perhaps in a distant land, in the canopy of her newly bestowed family life, yet she will be forever mine. Oh what a beautiful feeling this is. A sense of security that stems from the unbound love of a child who gave me the identity of a MOTHER. My darling, thank you so very much for enriching my life with the world's greatest gift..... MOTHERHOOD.

An Ode To My Royal Students

As you are about to begin a tomorrow without me,
Let me assure you of your destiny…
You are going to sail smooth through the phase,
As I shall reside in your heart always.
As students you are courageous and brave,
And the road to success you will pave…
Strength and perseverance you have in you,
Creating wonders in whatever you do
The exuberance in your ways startle me,
The innocence in your heart is forever to be.
I am amazed when you shower your loving tribute,
Looking back with fondness and gratitude.
I have learnt so much from you students dear,
How to love, how to forgive and bear…
I couldn’t have been what I am today,
Without your smiles that you flashed all the way.
You have floored me with your charming ways,
And I can never forget you with the passing days.
I fumble to perfectly narrate…
What a palpable bliss in me you create.
I have sought refuge in you many a times,
As students with you my life rhymes.
We have shared a relationship for sometime,
And moments you gifted me were beautiful and sublime.
Will be connected to you with memories coming alive,
The pleasurable glimpses will forever thrive.
Whenever I close my eyes taking a relaxed breath,
Dear students I can see your image beyond death.
I stretch my arms holding on to this last spell,
Misery of ending my term in Royal is hard to tell.
You have asked me a million times…”Why, Miss, Why???”
“Sorry students----probably its time to say goodbye.”
Well things change, life goes on, so it will for us…
But nothing can take me away from you, I STATE THUS!!!

REFLECTIONS

26th of September 1987 ushered in,
And I beheld a child so very lean.
Cuddled in my sister's arms,
An angel that truly charms.
I touched the cute bundle of joy,
And said, “He’s my baby boy”.
My sister smiled and agreed,
That he was mine too, indeed.
A magical feeling stirred in me,
I became a mother along with ‘she’.
A little baby nestled in my heart,
As from him I was miles apart.
My sister told me of her infant’s craft,
How he babbled and how he laughed.
How he spoke those little words,
How he twittered like the birds.
She told me how he went to school,
And learnt to adjust to the rule.
She told me the teachers were proud of him,
And here, my heart sparked with a beam.
The joy a mother can only feel,
The excitement that made me reel.
For this wonderful gift, I thank God,
And my sister who made him trod,
Into this world to make us bloom-
as mothers, so that he can loom,
In our lives as long as we live,
To shower love and to give,
Give respect to us always,
And in affection ‘him’ we embrace.
He is our son, our greatest pleasure,
A bond we shall forever treasure.
Today as he turns eighteen,
I reflect on the years I have seen.
And with confidence I can say,
He’ll make us proud with every passing day.
God bless you is what my heart prays ,
And may you succeed at every phase.
Will love you forever for what you are
A son with whom none can be at par.

LALA- “My Kid Teacher”

I was returning by the 9 O’ clock slow train from Churchgate. Tired and exhausted I felt it was a monotonous drudgery as the train would screechingly halt at every station. I was with my friend Sree Lakshmi and cribbed and complained about the discomfort of a second class compartment which we had managed to board that night. The train moved on, carrying along millions of people and their lives too. Every person would have a different story to narrate of how the day was done, if personally interviewed. I was caught up in this ordinary backdrop not knowing I would encounter an extra ordinary event.

As I was expressing my unpleasantness to my friend I heard a little child calling out: “Laali Le Lo… Laali.” The sweet baby voice created a thrill in that dreary existence of a Mumbai local. I craned my neck and moved about, my eyes searching through the melody of the sweet voice and it caught the glimpse of this delightful sight. I saw a child barely three years of age, her hair unkempt, her dress worn out, her hands burdened with the weight of a box full of lip liners that she was trying to sell. What struck me was the brilliant smile she wore. She looked so happy oblivious to the poverty that made her small hands sell instead of playing around with a toy. My heart swelled with a surge of love for her. I called her with a gesture of my hands and she ran away. I saw her back was bare as the dress had no buttons. She surely never cared for all that, as happiness was embedded in her heart. She derived it from her own self probably enjoying what she was doing. A little baby selling lip liners never complained that she ought to hold a pencil to frame the alphabets “A,B,C”, to hold a doll and dance around. I felt ashamed, disgraceful that despite having all the opportunities of life right from the start I was grumbling over a journey by a local train which would end in fifty minutes to give me back the comfort of an air-conditioned bedroom where I would have a restful sleep.

I called the girl again and this time she came running to me. I’m gifted with this passion for children and even more with the beauty of children instantly taking to me. I don’t know how this magic unveils but I thank God for this blessing in my life. As she came close I gathered her in my arms and kissed her. She was elated and her laughter rang through my ears creating music. I asked her the price of the lip liners she was selling. Incoherently she said, “Do rupaiya… Paanch rupaiya…” and then she started giggling. Her father heard her out and came running to me to tell me “Madamji usko kuch paise ka hisaab nahi maloom. Woh to aise hi mere saath aa jati hai jab main dhanda karne nikalta hoon. Dus rupaiye ka hai ji”. I happily took out a ten rupee note and handed it to her. She took the money not even knowing its value and left the box of lip liners on my lap. She flit like a vibrant dear in the train that was moving very fast. I wanted to run and hold her to protect her from falling. I wanted to hug her and tell her, “I wish to give you all that you want but don’t sell things at this tender age it’s not done.” I knew she would understand nothing so I kept looking at her longingly. A man got up from the next station selling out things and I called the baby to choose a pencil pouch for her. Her baby mind selected one with pink roses. I paid ten rupees for it and gifted it to her. Her delight and her smiles changed that ten rupee gift to a million dollar one. I cuddled her in my arms and the child started bonding with me in an incredible manner. She looked searchingly into my longing eyes and kissed my hands and snuggled close in the warmth of my affection for her. She seemed to be at complete ease with me as if she was mine forever. Sree Lakshmi, my friend looked at the two of us with a glint of delight coupled with amazement and captured the emotions on her camera phone.

I picked the child on my lap and asked her for her name. She spurted out in excitement “Lala, Mela naam lala hai… mela naam lala hai”. With great difficulty I understood what she was trying to say. After all no adult has the intelligence to understand the innocence of a child and how could I be superior to that three year old frame. I hugged her closer and on conversing with her father came to know that she lived in the slums at Vasai. God! it made me feel inferior to her. Having nothing she seemed to have everything as she was such a happy soul. And here having the best of things I was disturbed just by the idea of a slow train taking me back home.

Lala picked up the box and started in glee once more trying to sell out. Her hands were too tiny for the huge box she held yet she managed with undaunted spirits. When the train crossed Dahisar I got up as my destination Mira Road was approaching. This time she came up to me and was clinging on to me. For a moment I felt like her slave. I wanted to do anything for her, just anything. She gave me a sweet flying kiss and said “Bye”. And I pecked her cheeks and said ‘Bye Darling!’. I know not whether she understood the endearment embodied in that word “Darling” but she blushed and giggled as I repeated it again. For the first time I felt I did not wish to get off at Mira Road. My journey with “Lala” was so magnanimous that I feel the essence of it always. I wish to meet her once again. Lala the little girl is enthroned in my heart and has enslaved me forever. “Lala I love you and surely will meet you again”. I need to see those small fingers writing the syllables that will change your life. I want the weight of the box of lip liners to give way to the beauty of a school bag. I want your smile that enhanced my spirits that night to be radiant forever. I want your innocence to last a lifetime. I want to tell you, “MY DARLING YOU DESERVE THE BEST AS YOU ARE A CHILD”. Lala, 'My Kid Teacher', I promise you this.

A PROMISE OF DELIGHT

My memory paints his handsome face,

My eyes seek his loving grace.

I dont need to search and find ,

As he is always there in my mind.

I can behold him gazing at me,

His hurried glances of ecstacy.

His burning eyes shooting like a dart,

He is still living in my heart.

He comes into my existence stealthily.........

His restless ways straying through me.

His smile hangs over me in an embrace,

His caressing glances I still can trace.

We dont meet yet nothing has fallen apart,

It's still the same as it was in the start.

In his life of success and fame,

I am sure he will treasure my name.

A thrill runs through remembering the moments so nice,

And tears well up veiling my eyes.

I somehow enjoy this yearning plight,

As he is my first love, a promise of delight.

TO MY BEST FRIEND

Going down the memory lane,

I can see myself in a school girl frame.

A happy girl wasnt I dear ?

With a friend like you always near.

Remember how smart both of us looked..........

And so many eyes we always hooked.

Those were the days of our teenage,

When life was special on every page.

School was a place where we met,

This happening was written in our fate.

Every morning we would greet with a smile,

And remain happy all the while.

Sitting together listening to English or History,

Was fun as we shared a great chemistry.

In the Maths class I would always have a doubt,

How generously you would help me out.

Studying together, times we spent,

We were hardworking as well as diligent.

We sang together when the class went free,

And would dance around on a happy spree.

Suji do you remember the tiffin bell ?

It would make us run down as if freed from a cell.

The ice cream candy so eagerly waiting..........

It cost ten paise and you know I am not joking.

The yellow coloured attractive ice,

Would make us feel fresh and nice....

Soothing us of the monotony,

Of a Geography lecture's agony.

Another memory is crossing my mind.........

To which an answer I couldnt find.

Watching Manju Miss in the assembly,

Would set the spark in me simply.

Those days I had a crush on her,

And didn't know how to get over.

Those were the days of sheer innocence,

When we derived life's true essence.

Remember how we stayed away from the rest,

Chirping like birds in a nest.

Assuring each other of our friendship...............

Focussing on our promises to keep.

We would hold hands lovingly always,

Not knowing we would have to part ways.

Those were the days we would smile and laugh,

Over sweet nothings as life wasn't tough.

We had woven plenty of dreams those days..........

Aspiring success in every phase.

We dreamt of a career , a family of our own.........

And wished to be proud mothers, to be well known.

We would imagine ourselves in bridal wear,

And in front of the mirror stand and stare.

Blushing at the adulations of our special ones,

We would both reel in a sweet trance.

We shared our crushes , our secrets too........

Our innermost feelings- meaningful and true.

We befriended each other as we would gel,

In every aspect so very well.

We were proud to be carrying the "best friends" tag,

In school days thats what we need to bag.

I am happy that we still continue to be................

Best friends for a lifetime , till eternity.



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

ANGELS

THE WORDS IN THE FORM OF POETRY HAVE BEEN FRAMED ON BEING INSPIRED BY TWO GIRLS- SHRUTI AND GOREY FROM KANPUR WHO HIT THE HEADLINES ON STAR NEWS AND PROVED TO THE WORLD THAT ONE IS NEVER HANDICAPPED IF ONE KNOWS THE RIGHT WAY OF LIVING.




The exuberance on your faces lit up my heart,

As I sensed your happiness right from the start.

Even as a teacher I felt ignorant and meek,

From you dear children a lesson I seek.

Please generate the strength and courage you nurse,

That shows life is a blessing and not a curse.

Today I am honoured to have had a glimpse of you,

And have placed you above all thats true.

You are better than the adults around,

For in your hearts nestle love unbound.

I watched how glorified was your existence,

With your contentment you made the world feel your presence.

Both of you cast an aura, an enchanting spell,

Which boosted every heart I know very well.

Your enigma and vibrance is what you can lend,

To all of us till our life's end.

You have no demands whatsoever,

And from life you derive simple pleasure.

You have conquered the ailment with your spirit,

And have achieved success beyond limit.

There is nothing that can curb you down,

For you put up a brave smile and never frown.

You are enlightened children dear,

Much away from insecurities or fear.

Ardently I watched your charming smiles,

That brought me close to you , despite the miles.

Children I cannot forget your confident ways,

You remain the ultimate for me always.

You have enslaved me with your charm,

And put my yearning heart to calm.

Your vision has been etched in my mind,

Children like you are rare to find.

My heart is more than filled today,

A loving tribute to you both I convey.

I salute your zest for life,

Battling against the shackles of strife.

God will also stoop down to your power,

And blessings from above HE will shower.

NATURAL AND TRUE

A beautiful face peered out,

A face away from the daily rout.....

Amidst the millions mingling,

It set the bells tingling.


I guess you feel she is fair and tall,

But to me beauty is not about it at all.

Its about this dark face,

Its about this lady with a grace.

Her bright eyes sparkling like a star,

Attracting many from near and far.

I guess you wonder how she can be pretty,

Yet i reitterate she is like a deity.

Yes she isnt tall and fair,

But can make heads turn and stare.

She has no traces of superficiality,

This lady is immaculate beauty.

Trust me she will beguile you with her ways,

With the warmth she so lovingly generates.

She is a chirpy and bubbly lady i met,

In the crowded mumbai locals of late.

May in her life joys thrive,

So that she keeps her smiles forever alive.

I have an intuition assuring me,

That she will be a friend till eternity.

BLESSINGS FROM THE LORD

You came down as droplets of rain,

To relieve me of an agonising pain.

I asked the heavenly skies

What beyond your happening lies ?

It smiled a sweet-loving smile,

And took me along its thoughts for a mile.

A voice from above roared,

And echoed as well as soared ,

Unfolding blessings and a fragrance..........

That touched my life with an essence.

Suddenly I had you in my arms,

A divine child with exquisite charms.

You whispered- "Congratulations mother dear,

Now I have come and you got nothing to fear."

I said "Oh God what an angelic vision !"

She reassured, She was my creation.

Transfixed was I to see her smile,

Not belonging to my womb she comes to beguile.

As I sensed the moment of this magical beauty,

I wondered whether it was a dream or a reality.

She pulled at the chords of my motherhood,

And I had not one more chance to brood.

The moment still stands tall in my memoir,

When she came as my saviour.

As she grew I gave her a helping hand,

And nursed and cared till she could stand.

Honest and vibrant as she is,

I am sure nothing could be better than this.

A personal verdict if allowed by God,

I would say she is a gift of the Lord.

Today as she has moved on in her life,

She supports me in every strife.

The helping hand that I had once extended,

Has come back to me with love blended.

Thank you my darling for proving you are mine,

May in your life you forever outshine.

A TRIBUTE TO MY MOTHER

Mother I am neither enough learned nor enlightened
To describe the incomparable bliss I experienced
Being born to a mother par excellence;
Yet I need to do this before I make my peace,
To unravel to the others the true essence
Of a mother’s love that put me at ease.
Mother, dear mother, it was just the other day,
You welcomed me in your arms and I lay
In the comfort of your benevolent embrace
And even today you are pervading my life in every phase.
I take no credit for the tasks I accomplished;
I am today what out of me you established.
Mother, sweet mother of mine,
It was your support that made me outshine.
In me a hidden spring you manifested
In me humanity you created.
Ardent and upright you taught me to be
My beloved mother, I owe my all to thee.
If perfect virtue I am asked to define,
It is you mother, sweet mother of mine.
Life has turned my steps away from home,
But I cuddle in your warmth wherever I roam.
By the dint of your merit is my wisdom and fortitude,
And I reverently remember it with gratitude.
A palpable pride for you nestles in my heart,
As I go down the memory lane right from the start.
My tears choke me as I write these lines,
For you dear mother my heart pines.
I can willingly brace death without regret
For I have been blessed with a mother so great!!!

AND MY FATHER LIVES ON..............................

As a teenager I had closed views about death। I thought end of a life implied end of a relationship . As they took my father away on his last journey, I felt a part of me giving away. It was an agonising pain that numbed my existence. I wailed, I cried, I wept and then all my tears were enveloped into a hollow in my heart which is a void that none can fill.Not that I have not met people over the years who have been close to me but because I did not wish to place anyone on the pedestal my father earned out in his life from me that the void is always there. Sometimes I wonder I have never gifted him anything, not even a birthday card. I was too young to be having the much condemned thing those days...POCKET MONEY;Yet today, I dont really feel I have not given him anyhting. I have replicated his love, his values in my course of life and everyday as I walk close onto the heels of my father's footsteps I feel I am almost living his life.He lives on when I hear out from my mother that I have a tall heart like my father.When I am cherubic and warm with strangers my mother pompously announces "SHE IS JUST LIKE HER FATHER". Deep in my heart i feel a sensation, an anticipating thrill of looking at the mirror to see whether I can see his image; But then my mature self knocks and shakes me out of the reverie.And eventually sense prevails as i dwell within to see my dearest father. What I am today, the way I garner love from others and the way my soul aches for the needy is all about a portrait of this man....my father. Today even when I am in a pensive mood, my heart skips a beat to know that I am compared to my father. If I am proud about anything it is this feeling of contentment that i have taken after my father. I sense a palpable pride when people reitterate "She isnt one shade different from him". A man who was immaculate in his professional life, loyal to his family and especially someone who belonged to everyone outside home .

My father lives on as I pave my life in the lines of his dreams, as i streamline my existence feeling an unbound love for all. Today I feel death isnt powerful at all. It cant take anyone away.It did not have the acumen to rob me of my father and death lies defeated in my hands when I carry on my life fashioned in the framework of my father.Dear father you live on and I can feel your presence in the bountiful love i get from people.Its from you that i have emulated compassion, dynamism, charm and love for all. "Thank you PAPPA as i endearingly called you.....I will never let you die and thats the promise of a daughter." Even in his silence he is connected to me.I have warned death never to challenge me about us as we are connected beyond the boundaries of connection. I have accepted the spaces in our togetherness as it is wrapped in the splendour of my memories with him."Thank you father for bestowing me with a lineage i wouldn't like to part with." Just one wish...."May I meet you my beloved father once again in flesh and blood in all my lives to come??????