Silent fire

Tags

5AM, Bombay, Cityscapes, Dawn, dversepoets, Morning magic, Morning ritual, Morning scents, Morning Series, New York City, OpenLinkNight

Photography and image editing – Kavita

As the navy pigments
fade into embers of saffron
infused in tints of rose
And as time settles its dispute
between bygones and morrows,
today has lazily set in
– behind the stretched landscape –
– above the river’s mist –
– grazing her edifices and steeples –
She awakens like she does each day
Her smell reaching my nose
– Not of burnt cigars –
– Not of rough pavements –
But of sacred ashes
scattered among snaking railroads,
And of an old tea house
at the corner of my street
serving life in little cups

And my heart whimpers
in nervous exhilaration
as she – yet again –
whispers to me
She’s mine and I, hers

**Also posting for Open Link Night at d’VersePoets pub… the craziest place in town, where every hour is happy hour! **

Birthplace of a song

Tags

A lesson, Cancun, dversepoets, Mexico, Morning Series, OpenLinkNight, Ponderings, Realization, Reflection, Sands of time, Slipping away

Photography and image editing by Kavita – Cancun, Mexico

In that dreamed of heaven
– called shore –
where a grain of sand met a drop of water
I placed a foot, or two
I sipped a mojito, or two
I picked a conch, or two
And I knew why it was the dreamed of land
I knew why not everyone could be there
I had learnt
the difference between
existing and living
the link between
music and lyrics

Moments defined themselves
in expanded universes
of little trivialities
And even the mundane
seemed liked sacred rituals

Waves touched my feet
and whispered between my toes,
secrets, which carried themselves
to the trenches within my heart
And suddenly it was all so simple
All so clear to me
Clear as the first raindrop
– that ever kissed the sea –

*Posting this for OpenLinkNight @ d’VersePoets(week 87).. my favorite stop for poetry & inspiration! *

Spires into the sky

Tags

Bombay, By the sea, City, dversepoets, My love(s), New York, OpenLinkNight, Reality, Skyline, True cities, Urban

Photography and image editing by Kavita

Long after the days and nights
have merged unceremoniously
into an eclipse of hardened truth
Long after life has perished
and death has vaporized
into a cloud of tearful smog
Long after voices have dropped
like insignificant pennies
into bowls held by callous hands
Long after dreams have realized
into bittersweet delusions
catalyzed by an ambitious cocaine
Long after the feet have run
beyond those thorny pinnacles
coveted by many a faraway eye

The city still breathes
in her million pulsating hearts
The city still bleeds
into a million curious minds

Mostly thriving
Sometimes conniving
But always striving
To seduce the unknown
To accompany the lonely
To hold back her own

And she lives…
like none other…

*Posting this for OpenLinkNight @ d’VersePoets… my favorite stop for inspiration! *

Zona oblivia…

Tags

Acceptance, Beyond everything, Doesn't matter, dversepoets, Each other, Love, Oblivion, OpenLinkNight, Society, Unconditional, Unperturbed, Victory

Faces in the crowd (an iPad attempt by me)

Plunging into
the familiar abyss
of scathing looks
Stung by
the gnawing tongues
of a raging ocean
Surrounded by
the jarring sounds
of a chaotic world
Cocooned in
a transparent bubble
of chromatic moments
They stand alone
– ensconced –
in each other’s arms

And emerging from the
stark clouds of apathy
are the first signs
of a fluttering kiss…

Posting this poem for Week 56 of OpenLinkNight @ d’VersePoets pub… if you haven’t already been there, NOW is the right time to do so! Enjoy!! 🙂

An upended story

Tags

City on water, Coming to terms, Conversation with a reflection, d'Verse Poets Pub, Denials, NYC, OpenLinkNight, Pondering, Reflection, Ripples, Truths

Reflections through my lens vis-a-vis Reflections in word

Alone among myriads
When words become scattered droplets
and reality, some sheer film of mist,
A singular reflected ray of light
grabs me by the ankle
and before vanishing, it says,
“look for me when you need me most…
If you find me, I am yours to hold
If you don’t, you’ll seek me
till you choose to forget”
And among the shivering shimmers on the surface,
Where truths ripple and lies fold over,
Where smiling masks float yet eyes plead guilty,
A lone image befriends…

---

**This poem marks the end of my hiatus from blogging and versing (thankfully!)… 🙂 And I am posting it for Week 40 of OpenLinkNight @ d’VersePoets – where awesomeness happens! **

Smoked pearls

Tags

Alcohol, Breezer, Chocolate Caramel Martini, D'VersePoets Pub, Drink, Enjoy, High, Intoxicaant, Light-headedness, Liqueur, Liquor, Nice time, Ode to a drink, OpenLinkNight, Smoky liquids

Image shot by me at an Italian trattoria in Key West

You dance on a glazed iris
like a frozen flame
eager to burn
the very air
that breathes life into it

You pacify a rigid mind
like a cool breeze
ready to salve
a tense volcano
on the verge of explosion

You leap into action
like a snoozing engine
eager to roll
at the slightest touch
of rekindled embers

You make the blood rush
like a devious joy ride
one moment in the sky
the next, rolling down
with a thundering force

They say you are a tease
waiting to appease
a morose king
a jubilant beggar
a broken heart
a mended soul

They say you lure
They say you cure
Yet I know
you are but a liquid genie
trapped in an amber bottle
– no more –
– no less –
Sometimes kind
Sometimes vile
but always looking
at the world outside
with a resigned smirk

**After 2 weeks of inaction (no thanks to my own laziness and to the dreadful writer’s block), this week I decided to break those chains by writing a poem – and I dedicate it to the awesome poets at d’VersePoets Pub – OpenLinkNight… Cheers, peeps!! This round’s on me… alright?! 🙂 **

Pixelated memory

Tags

Anger, Angry words, Cannot be taken back, d'Verse Poets Pub, Dropping an axe!, Emotional, Faint memory, Full stop, Helpness, Loss, Moods, Only a memory now, OpenLinkNight, Past tense, Relationship, The River Journal, Walking away

I had recently clicked this in Key West... ofcourse I Gimp'd it a bit so it "suited" this poem 🙂

Gestures flashed
like ominous streaks
of steely lightning

Words rolled
like metal beads
off a snapped nylon cord

Emotions flowed
like molten lava
from a furious volcano

Sparks flew
like limpid feathers
on a still Autumn eve

Silence pervaded
like an eerie calm
after a brutal raging storm

…. Then you were gone….
With the stars in my eyes
silently exploding
into a monotony
of nothingness
And all I could do
was stand there
looking at you
ashen faced
while you
blurred
into an
urn of
dots
:::
:

---

**Posted for Week 9 of OpenLinkNight @ d’VersePoets Pub… this is ONE place you ought to check out! You are bound to love it! **

***This poem has been featured in The River – an ever so artistic journal, you are bound to simply LOVE it! ***

Unspoken message

Tags

Beggar, Captivated by a tune, Content, D'VersePoets Pub, Dark alley, Derelict, Hidden happiness, Hidden message, OpenLinkNight, Poor but satisfied, Shadow, Silhouette, Singing, Singing a silent tune, Spellbound, Tune of a beggar, Wanting nothing more

Image credits: str4y@DeviantArt

His raspy voice
beckoned me to turn
– to get a fleeting glimpse –
of the dead smile
that uncouthly flaunted
his broken incisor

His void eyes
stole my attention
– made me wince –
at the ashen skin
that gaily hung
from his sallow face

His limp gait
made me follow him
– down the deserted alley –
with eerie streetlights
that proudly emboldened
his gaping sore

And yet somehow,

His gaunt fingers
held my breath
– between the tuned strings –
of his greying guitar
that completed a scrawny image
of his receding silhouette…

---

**Posted for Week 8 of OpenLinkNight at d’VersePoets Pub – the coolest place to be! Check it out! I can bet you won’t regret it! **

World at odds

Tags

Aggression v/s calm, Contradictory, d'Verse Poets Pub, Do these means justify the end?, OpenLinkNight, Opposites attract, Ridiculous world, Strange ways, Utopia, War and Peace, War towards Peace

Image credits: VanthMithra @ DeviantArt

Abort violence
Nip the weed
at its very root
so it never grows
into a symbol of vile

Decapitate terrorism
with a heavy axe
so it doesn’t dare
to raise its ugly head
against humanity

Make a promise
to honor the martyrs
with a handmade wreath
of bone and deceit
interlaced with perfection

Rally for peace
by tossing a grenade
and razing all
that obstruct the march
towards a bloody calm…

Guard with spears
Flood with tears
Barricade with fears
this winding path
 ~ to  that dreamed of Utopia ~

---

**Posted for Week 7 of OpenLinkNight @ d’VersePoets Pub… It’s my fave poetic hangout!! So you might (should) wanna check it out yourself! 🙂 **

Indelibly stained

Tags

Addiction, all for nothing, At a price, Burning away, Charred life, Cigar, Cigarette, D'VersePoets Pub, Drawn to danger, Empty life, Guilty pleasure, Life of a guilty pleasure, Lost cause, OpenLinkNight, Purposeless, Reduced to nothingness, Scarred life, Selling oneself, Sex worker, Smoking, Tobacco, Vice

Image Credits: sketchonme@DeviantArt

You were once
that faithful friend
with a wooden shoulder
to cry on

You could have been
so much more…

Yet you chose
to be just a fistful
of dead leaves
picked and rolled,
coaxed and cajoled
into a chamber
Of suffocation,
Of humiliation
waiting to be smelt
– to be consumed –
by a lustful mouth
that holds the power
to set you free
into an irreversible swirl
– of smoke –

Now here you lie
Used
Abused
on a deserted crossroad
of grey ashes,
charred
scarred,
trying to choose
between the void of uncertainty
and the certain path to hell

You could have been
so much more…

---

**Posted for Week 6 of OpenLinkNight @ D’VersePoets Pub… Oh yea, it’s this cool new hangout with a fabulous poetic patronage! Check it out, link in your work, read on, and say Cheers!! 🙂 **

Arms wide open…

Tags

Autumn, Change of seasons, D'VersePoets Pub, Embrace of a lover, Fall, Lover, Onset of Fall, OpenLinkNight, Return of a lost love, Return of Fall, Signs of Autumn, The coveted embrace, Undying wait, Welcoming Fall

Image credits: This beautiful painting is by LeonidaFremov.. and I saw it @ DeviantArt.com...

Shush not your footfalls
I can hear them move
behind the curtain
of a timid zephyr

Dampen not your warmth
I can taste its fullness
from the urn
of a melting sun

Efface not your smile
I can see it arc
upon the froth
of crashing waves

Withdraw not your presence
I can feel its weight
midst the rustle
of amber leaves

Bury not your fragrance
I can smell its richness
in the birth
of autumnal showers

Tease me not
with your impish ways
While I lie in wait
beyond all summers
for your coveted kiss
…yet another time…
While I herald
the chirruping harbingers
of your crisp arrival
…yet another time…

---

**Posted for the fifth week of OpenLinkNight @ d’VersePoets… this is one pub you all ye poets would wanna make your home.. Link in your poem here, read on, and have fun! Cheers!! 🙂 **

Confoundedly simple…

Tags

Begging for freedom, Chained, Confused, D'VersePoets Pub, Faith, Freed, Gasping for breath, Hope, Joy followed by sorrow, Light at the end of the tunnel, Mixed feelings, OpenLinkNight, Simple yet tough, Trapped

Image Credits: RomanticFae@DeviantArt

Obscured
by laced veils
of broken thought
I wonder if I want
to really be seen

Tethered
to these pillars
of unyielding resolve
I suspect the strength
of my pliant will

Shadowed
by a shroud
of crystal emotions
I search the depths
of my hardened heart

Strangled
by tentacles
of unwelcome dreams
I gasp for a breath
of some noxious chance

And yet
Here I am…

Enamored
by the aura
of a glowing spirit
Ready to soar
into the vastness
of unending skies

---

**Posted for OpenLinkNight (week 4) at  d’VersePoets Pub… Check out the yummy stuff offered here… you will be glad you did!! **

An uncalibrated shift

Tags

Avatars, Change, D'VersePoets Pub, Different incarnations, Growth, Journey, Life, Life Cycle, Love, Metamorphosis, OpenLinkNight, Progression, Relationships, Roles to play, Water

Image Credits: wb_skinner@DeviantArt

First a few driblets
Scattered
like a misty spray of fate
Across hopeful faces
in the midst of a drought

Then a fragile stream
Meandering
through mystic woods
Gurgling
in baby bursts of elation

Then a splendid waterfall
Cascading
with an unstoppable force
As strong as
the thirst for life

Then a determined river
Flowing…
Sometimes narrow for thought
Sometimes broad as the horizon
Its tributaries creeping quietly
Until the ultimate merge

Then a magnificent ocean
Struck by passing storms
But housing
islands of unperturbed sanctity
Yet raging
for attention at the shores

Finally a seething tide
Trying to adhere
to sands of a glassy promise
Yet ebbing
into realms of a briny embrace

---

**Posted for the third week of OpenLinkNight @ dVersePoets Pub – the most interesting pace in town, for the artistically oriented! Link in your poem here, enjoy the critique & attention and simply ENJOY!! 🙂 **

Tilted over…

Tags

Allowing past to rule, dversepoets, Endless, Eternal, Leading memories to a future, Memories, OpenLinkNight, Sandglass of yesteryears, Time waits for none, Waiting for nothingness, Watching as time passes by

Image credits: liuanta @ Deviant Art

Drawn by a torque into
the immense whirlpool
of unfrozen memories
I observe them drip
timidly slip
into
a
pale
translucence
on the other side
Until one pink morn
a faint realization dawns
while eternity has set in

---

**Posted for the grand opening of dVersePoets – a place for poets, poems and their friends :)**