In these riddles
I have you in my mind
The days, the seasons
That which has been constant
That which we knew wasn’t forever
That which is a habit now
We cannot hold on even if we wanted to
We will be thankful for what we have
But eyes do well up
At the prospect of not having another day, another season.
“What do you want to be when you grow older?”, she was asked
“A pilot”, “a teacher”, “a doctor”, the five year old said
“You can do whatever you set your mind to”, she was told
This opened up for her, every possibility ahead
With time, her dreams grew wings and they were let to fly
Allowed were they, during the times into which she was hurled
Her kind were out, learning, working and leading
After all, they only had one extra ability, than the rest of the world
Power comes with knowledge and independence
Something that was held for a long time from this gender
With the ability to stand for what she believed in
She didn’t have to care for any offender or defender
What she did not know, was that her times were only half ready for her
They said she could dream, but not be misled
“Who will raise the children?”, “who will tidy the home?”, they asked
“How can we be led by those, who until now, only bred and fed?”
She reasoned that the domestic and social responsibilities were shared
Efforts and skills determined capability, and from their masculine ego, she be spared
They turned to religion and traditions, “you forget your role”, they opined
“We may have advanced in other ways, but in these interpretations, we will remain ancient”, they determined
She knows her sentiments resonate with many
But to the systemic arguments against her, she must hold her own
She may be alone in fighting now, but there are many like her
You better prepare fully for her, the seeds of change have been sown
Don’t take her compassion for granted, it comes from great care
Don’t take her silence for meekness, it comes from great strength
You do not comprehend her fierceness, she is the energy that sustains you
You do not comprehend her power, she is the fire that can keep you warm or burn you.
Cold and sharp as icicles
Heavy as a stone
Deep and dark as sea
Pricky as thorns
The loyal pain residing in my heart,
Is it disappointments or hopes that hurt more?
There is still a smile on my lips
Knowing I will always have a companion
A young love fired my virgin heart
We held hands under the summer sun
There was passion and great promise
But the differences and inexperience won
Split between different worlds
I went with everything but my heart
But when promises meant nothing
Hope too left me at last
I have met my questions and shaken hands with my fears
The heart knows no more bottoms and it soars high
When the heart never dreamt small in rooms dark
Why will it limit when all I can see is sky
Twig by twig they built their nest
They fed their nestlings before themselves
When the time came, they dared to let their fledgling fly bold and far
And they flew all the way to build their young one’s nest, twig by twig
Yes, the sun is all powerful
But their love and care surpass
The sun may determine the day and night
But their smile makes the sunshine!
With a fire that lightens up every space and heart
With a warmth that eases every fatigue and pain
With a glow that brings energy and optimism
With a majesty that brings strength and courage
Rise everyday
It was one of those moments; the surprise from coincidence and sheer helplessness made me LOL!
I am generally a grateful person but it is not everyday that I thank the warm water in my shower. Today being an especially cold day, the warm water with good water pressure in the shower made me wonder about people who didn’t have such luxury in the past. Why, many still don’t have it today. Gratitude enveloped me along with the warm water and I was thankful for it! Then suddenly, I realized, the water pressure didn’t seem as good as what it was. I stared at the water coming out of the hose and noticed that the water had actually reduced.
New wonders entered my thoughts; it’s my first winter in this house, have the pipes frozen? Should I proceed to use the soap or just step out? Will the water continue at this pressure or stop? Unlike many profound questions in life, these were going to be answered very soon. I, being my adventurous and optimistic self, proceeded with the idea of the soap. And alas, as soon as I was fully lathered up, the water stopped. I continued with the drops coming out of the hose, really trying to make them count. At this point, water is all I wanted – cold would also do. But here I was, the mild soap drying on my skin, almost into a moisturizer I thought.
I did what we always do in situations not to our liking before we accept them. I prayed. I prayed for water from the hose. After acceptance hit me, I tried one last practical solution. I rushed to the other bathroom, but this was the state of every tap in the house. All I had was a few glasses of drinking water at home. So being economical, I decided to just pat myself dry and get into warm clothes. My dad had managed to get out of showers with some lurking lathers on so many occasions, and he has been fine. I thought to myself, I will be fine too.
After prodding the neighbors, I learned that the water in this locality is sometimes briefly shut during weekday afternoons because of a factory close by, that sometimes needs to add new water pipelines. Having usually been at work during those times, I was never aware of it. Now, I was aware (along with being quite clean) and still grateful for the warm water that sometimes stops.
