00482--WALKING DOWN THE HILL

WALKING DOWN THE HILL

Walking down the hill I hold your hand

We are silent, silent like silence itself

Are these black rocks our frozen words ?

Are these sighs our parting wishes?

Up the hill the steps were easy

Though hands not held, hearts bonded

Down the hill the steps are heavy

Hands held but our hearts apart

Once when we reach the valley 
and look back, will there still be 
the very hill of love and those steps

To be travelled on another day?

00291--EYE AND EYE

 







EYE AND EYE

One day my eyes quarreled with each other
One to see a flower with bees around it
Other to focus a woman lay dead in the street
The quarrel went for hours to the day end
The woman by then buried and flower faded
Again they quarreled on the other day
To see rising sun and setting moon
Time grew, spread moments made it noon
The moon unseen, the sun unbearable
Eyes were anguished I gave them rest

While dying I kept them open to the world
But someone gently closed my eyelids

00290--O, HIDE NOT

 











O, HIDE NOT

O, hide not, hide not,
I know your presence.
I see your smile,
Though tears are filled.

Your steps true melodies,
My ears heard them alone.
Glances you cast in breeze,
Felt in my heart for ages.

Come out in this moonlight,
Or wait me in your grave.
Death won't dare to hold me back,
For he is familiar with love.

00289--LIES

LIES

They said it was
an accident.
A wall of crowed
Hid that scene.
But their words
could draw the
tragedy.

One said it was a
fifty year old woman.
I was shocked
for my mother would meet me
on that day.
I sat on the road
eyes filled.

Somebody turned and said:
“how dare they to
mislead others? It is
actually a man.”
Did father accompany her?
I trembled asking that myself.

How could I believe
this stranger?
He was far from the
spot of accident.

After minutes
the crowed thinned.
I got up, knees shivering.
Then there was
a path leading to
the spot of tragedy.

I moved forward.
And there...
There I could see
a picture;
Tragic but not personal.

It was a stray dog
crossing the road
and his line of life.

00288--THE MUSIC NIGHT

THE MUSIC NIGHT

Rain rhymed classic notes
Dancing fireflies under trees
Slowly rising fell-down stars
Are those hundred little lights

Sang by someone lovely song
Just as river gently moves
And as wind in paddy fields
Heard in the merry music night

Trembling lamps in huts are eyes
Of each goddess defending slumber
Wind with melody met those lights
Eyelids widened at once eyeing

Lie little ones in mothers' lap
Deep in sleep they smile a lot
Wind with melody met those babes
Sang and sighed of innocent infants

Fire framed coffin frees a soul
Sad notes played on moments' thought
Wind is back near widow faint
How to console, there feels its failure!

00287--FEAST OF LAMPS

FEAST OF LAMPS

Lit clay lamps must be merry this day,
For the Goddess won out the evil.
God and Goddess cast their eyes down,
And see the earth, another starry sky.
On the river banks and by the waysides,
Thousand lambs nodding as wind waves.
For these moments the moon is jealous,
Around him the stars are still,
But lucky few float down the streams.
Hanging stars might wish a fall.

The feast of lamps will end after hours,
A street boy may set out in the next morn,
And pick up a firework that was failed,
And say: “more must be left, for much was heard.”

00286--MYSTERY

MYSTERY

Unkind with nightmares night grew
Restless seas sounded deep thoughts
Dragging in the street like a drunkard
Bad fate stepped into human lives

Sighs of widows blew out the candles
Wandering souls sang melodies mysterious
Earthy mourns rose and darkened the sky
That of fancies floating strange and plenty

A huge mortuary at night the world is
Waiting to know the taste of soil
When freed from one slave of other
When broke all arms slave of death.

00285--THE WINNER

THE WINNER

I win this game
Though am defeated
And in fair light
Even if the sun is set
All flowers known to me
Not from gardens
And all melodies
I heard in silence
I am the happy child
In my sick bed
They did destroy me
And now cry
For me pretending
But I do win
This game of life
For never they knew
To love forgetting the self
And I did it
To her, to that heart
Thus I do win
(Though their deeds
Did destroy me)
This game, game of both
Love and life.

00284-- THE QUOTES

THE QUOTES

The God was nabbed
By all beggars
They said:
“You emptied our pots of coins!”
Their wives said:
“You gave us nightmares!”
Sons cried out:
“Away you took our toys!”
The God said:
“Sorry am I to do it again!”

00283--PRAYER OF A WIDOW

PRAYER OF A WIDOW

O God!
This roof,
These walls,
The raining out,
Shouting thunder,
Sharp lightning,
My worthless love,
And ignored flesh;
All that
My lord
Is my prayer!

00282--CUP OF TEA

CUP OF TEA

The old man and his dog were old.
Who would die first?
It was the question we had,
In minds as we saw them.
“My cup of tea”' the man would say, “is bitter,
I must have the last drop of it,though.”
But they both lived long enough to see,
The death of many,
Who n'er loved a dog.

00281--FORBIDDEN FRUIT

FORBIDDEN FRUIT

Apples have always been
Forbidden fruits for me
So when she asked
What name would I call her
I said: A P P L E !

00280--EASTER

EASTER

EASTER
 Long ago
On a starry midnight
With the moon's fullest face
The Holy Grave was opened
'Jesus' read the grave stone
Only the whore saw him
In his real handsomeness
Today
The church bell tolls
They feast and sing merrily
Beggars are with hope
The young ones shake hands
Lover's eyes in constant contact
The priest lifts his hands
To bless all devils
Christ is gone
The earth is an empty grave
Why should we light candles
And deck the vacant one
Where must I take you
To meet my living Christ
Need not come with me
Behold! Behold!
Around you and everywhere
In those pale faces
Where there is agony
Their lives are three days
Humiliation,poverty and death
A walk between Good Friday and Easter.

00279--DEATH AT CHRISTMAS EVE

DEATH AT CHRISTMAS EVE

Chilly morns of December windy
Sunny noons and nights starry
Angels sing Holy X-mas nearly
Three pigs knew nothing newly
Did mate and sleep in pigsty
Happiness in thick mud is lucky

At X-mas eve pigs all the way
Saw strangely and a butterfly
And wished if they could fly
With such wings coloured fully
Hanging stars around houses shiny
And thought how lit it likely

Reached a dark hut stood humbly
“Jesus” the butcher slowly did pray
And his long knife straight and dry
Entering into their necks steady
One by one they died bloody
“Jesus” the butcher uttered happily.

00278--BREEZE AND BLOOMS

BREEZE AND BLOOMS

Wind streams through flowery boughs
They nod, nod their blossom heads
Breeze and blooms all a dance
Some bees keep away still and staring

Now wind goes bidding farewell
Shed flowers on the soil left
As some tears that for love fallen
But sure the boughs will bear again

Lovely blooms for passing wind
It'll be back in the month of spring
For to carry heavenly perfumes
Though must shed and depart sadly.

00277--LULLABY

LULLABY

Lullaby...mother's lullaby...
Do come cradle cries;
Late mother beyond skies,
Sings no more gentle songs.

What that meadow, gives you bed,
For the nights of lonesome breath?
Who the god that serves you through,
All the winter's chilly morns?

Now the wings of wind you be,
Wave the love at orphan-sighs.
Bid true farewell to all likes,
To be the rhythmic notes of joy.

Rock his cradle as she did,
Shed white feathers mist may come.
Move not away, he may wake,
To see the mother not in sight!

00276--I KILL ME OFTEN

I KILL ME OFTEN

True is it that I kill me often
In busy mornings with no guilt
Sweaty noons are made for the kill
And gloomy evenings fit so well
Eyes don't fill and face not pale
Still I'm murdering myself


True is it that I kill me often
When my words,my thoughts
I hide, and favour those I hate
I do scratch my bald, heavy head
Each scratch is but across my soul
It kills me,kills me more than once


True is it that I kill me often
When in times I witness an insult
But keep my dissent within myself
I do sigh, a sigh very deep
Each sigh but life breath of my soul
It kills me, kills me as if drowning


True is it that I kill me often
When in fear I withdraw a shout
When in shame I ignore a kinsman
When in greed I lick those gold nails
When in anger I curse who fed me
True is it that I kill me often
  

 [Painting;Abstract Paintings By Keith Garrow]