An Ode to Womanhood

Enshrined within a pearl woven silhouette
she looks at the setting sun
like a goddess admiring one of her creations
reminiscing the days of yore
the zephyr kisses her flesh
and the waves imitate her hair.

She ponders into the infinity
with oceans in her angelic eyes
deep into the trenches of time
the memories as vibrant as a zither
plucking the strings of life
of love,lies,guilts and confessions.

The amber glow caresses her face
as she closes her eyes and breathes deep
sects of wind contend to flood her lungs
when her body shivers to the cool summer evening
the heavens watch her in all her grandeur
for nothing is more extravagant than her.

Of transition to the unsung melodies...

It was a normal drive to work. For the first time, I didn't see a pack of 4 cars piled up near the moti bagh flyover. I forgot to carry extra cash today. Already spent the 200 I was carrying on petrol and paid the toll from a vintage 50 rupee note. Had to be dishonest yet tactful for I was giving away a note that was half torn and held together by some cello tape. Just before the rajnigandha chowk, on the DND itself, I saw a crowd I usually don't see. A bike was down and someone had bitten the dust with it. I thanked the heavens for he was ok. He didn’t end up like my relative did.

Office is quite dull today. I have to buy an anti-glare screen for my monitor, for I can feel the prolonged hours of exposure to the screen taking the toll on my eyes.

I just can’t stop humming the tune from a computer game. It touches my soul. I strongly feel that the tune was composed keeping in mind the tastes of all the people like me. The low pitch chorus of male voices from the widely played game Halo. I can listen to it all day long. The guy I’ve known for the last 19 years is online. He just told me Halo 3 is out. I know he understands how I feel every time I hear that chorus. He finds the tune intimidating and I say “Yes, me too!” . It’s weird how we both understand what that means.

It scratches the layers of my black heart, for I associate it with death. It sounds like a bunch of friends singing an ode to a fallen comrade. It sounds like a thousand souls weeping for their loved one as if bidding farewell. The beauty lies in the fact that the chorus has no words. It sounds like the beginning and the end. That’s how grand it is.

I’m going 2 floors down to have a soft drink. I know that when I’ll hit the stairs, I’ll be humming the same tune.

The..

The god of darkness who dwelt in the underworld

The Son of Chaos, brother of Nox, father of Aether and Day

The incipit to the chapter of annihilation

The beginning and end of our corroded and weak lives

The last one, the first one, the serpent, the venom,

The consumer of exhumed remains, deity of the unholy, the robe of nocturna

The blood-red path, the aisle of the unhappy

The bringer of storm, the general of the army of the dead

The goat lord, the devourer of joy, the preacher of demise

The other side of the eclipse, the coldest fear

The sharpest blade, the thickest forest, the listener of all screams

The harshest truth, the whitest lie, the one between the angels and insects

The hunger, the lust, the sin, the disrespect

The longest sleep, the thunderous sky, the crimson rain

The enthroned, the unquestioned, the messiah

The ruthless commandment, the punisher

The savage, the butcher, the last resort

The black hearted , the angel of death

The lord of nevermore..Erebus.

Turmoil..

The 8 am rush. I'm ready for office,chewing my breakfast as fast as i can.Mom wants me to drop her near her school. Her mehndi dyed hair look beautiful. The wrinkles on her face constitute the countless days and nights of job,kitchen work,relatives,5 a.m alarms for morning walk and god knows what else. I gulp down the milk that she insists i should drink every morning before i leave.

On our way to her school, i honk to an old man. I feel guilty for he's really old. I should've stopped for him like i usually do. But something overpowers me and i don't do it. I drop mom at the community centre and watch her walk towards her school. I'm late. It's bumper to bumper at naraina. I keep driving, coz i have to.

I think about the countless things we forget and forgive when we're on the road. I watch 3 bikes and 4 cars jumping a traffic signal. I wonder why they can't wait for 2 minutes at a traffic signal.They wouldn't mind arguing for 20 minutes in case a vehicle runs into them while they're at their rossi and schumacher impersonation. It's just another day on the road. But i'm different today. I'm more aggressive today and I can feel it from within.It's overwhelming my senses.

I hit the DND flyway but i'm not doing 60-70 on the speedo. It's a 100. For some reason, i don't wish to slow down. I know the tarmac has a lot of questions for me which i can't answer.

Am in the office now, with a shirt that's half wet and a head that's heavy.