Why am I even writing this?

I tried writing a piece or two in the recent times,

Let me be honest and true, to not forget rhymes.
As was the practice when I first started writing,
I kept a brief note of things I felt might be exciting.

I wanted to write yet one more version of suicide,
But I slept through the process as I was too tired.
I started writing about the unfairness at workplace,
And I gave up half way because it didn't have that grace.

I wrote two stanzas on the silent problems in a man's life,
I quit because I didn't want to glorify my own strife.
I thought of writing diss verses on the hypocrites,
But decided against it to not waste my precious nights.

Thus the course of this art had been taking turns,
Surely there had been issues for which my heart burns,
And there's a lot of vocabulary my mind churns,
But I'd keep these half-burnt poems' funerary urns.

What shall I write about when I don't feel inspired,
if not this piece of idiocy that had here transpired.

మనసా పద

సూర్యుడే నిశిలో రాలిపోని, కరుణను భావమే అంతమవనీ

చెడుకే బలగము తోడ్పడని, మనుషులు బంధమే మరచిపోనీ,

బాధే మనసుని తొలిచేయని, నీ ప్రేమే గెలుచునులే.......

మనసా ఇక, పరుగాగక, నను చేరుకో, ఈ దరికి రా, ప్రేమే ఎన్నడూ ఓడదులే

చరణం 1 : 

ఇరువురి స్థితి గతి వేరవని, మన ప్రేమల గురుతులు మసకవనీ,

ఋతువుల గుణములు తడబడనీ, పిల్లలు పువ్వులు బోసిపొనీ,

ప్రకృతి సర్వము మారిపోనీ, మన ప్రేమే మారదులే..........

చరణం 2 :

భయపడకు, బెదురిడకు, నిను వీడి పోవును వేదనే,

తగు సమయం, నీ సమరం, తల వంచును ఈ విశ్వం.

మది ఖననం, మరు జననం, ఇక అంతము లేనిది ప్రేమయే,

ఇది నిజమే, ఇక ఉండదు కన్నీరే.....

A grey rat

The poor mother deprived of food feeds the baby over the brim.
The average dad who ran errands for a living adores the superstar.
The plump child bullied in his teens builds enviable physique.
The simple girl catcalled in the school is now a makeup influencer.

There is one narcissist who orders people to respect him.
There is a pervert who acts pious to not let society judge him.
The unskilled one wants to earn in millions and show one's worth.
The ignored child tries to be the best kid for parents' affection.

We are all insecure in our own ways,
We are all trying to win the rat race,
Often forgetting that we are all same,
Like any other rat in the cat's game.

Winter

The rains have slowly started marking the end of heat, 

everyone rejoiced on day one to the petrichor sweet.
Time moved quickly and all returned to their abode,
Tending to them, securing and praying not to erode.

All were in a bustle but only the old elephant was calm,
For its concern was how to keep the next winter warm.
She has had good memory of the agony from the past,
How she had to breathe voluntarily to not make it the last.

The days were getting shorter, the air smelled like mold,
All life went into their own burrows fearing the cold.
Those left in the open grew thicker fur for the chills,
Silence loomed all over, gone were the mating shrills.

There was enough greenery and water around to feed,
Problem was the chilling wind that the autumn freed.
The water was freezing, the leaves and twigs crushing,
Foxes and wolves kept track, eagles often came rushing.

There was no one around to ask about the return of sun,
No sign of hope, no will to live for she was the only one.
The battle was between the elephant and her own self,
Everyone else was a spectator, for meat on their shelf.

All that she knew was that the sun shall again rise,
For she was told truth by her father, noble and wise.
She ate the frozen branches, chewing on and on and on,
and sipped waters till all sensations in trunk were gone.

Countless days passed by without a sign of sun's heat,
All that helped her know she was alive was her heartbeat.
Lastly, the sun came a day clearing months of mist,
She was the only left alive of all she knew from her list.

Such shall be the despair where one has to win a fight,
Where all others shall skip or die screaming in plight.

Seasons

The summer has lasted long, there were cracks in the hard soil.

All the life that was left was throbbing in a biological turmoil.

The clouds were forming, all creatures rejoiced in the first rain.
The rain brought relief, and the breeze that soothned the pain.

Soon the incessant rains made the whole place smell musty,
The souls that once rejoiced, now wanted a land that's not murky.
The rains ended slowly, and all water drained as streams into rivers.
The earth cooled enough and the breezes now caused shivers.

The days became shorter and colder and a white gloom doomed,
All life was striving to find its own place as the cold wind loomed.
The fur grew thicker and the vultures often fed to their content.
Not many beasts knew how to make those winters well spent.

The sun eventually got warmer and the mist was fading away,
Gone was the cold wind, and the little ones were all out to play.
The days got longer and everyone girded around the big lake,
Until the predators ensured that lives were either ways at stake.

The summer has lasted long, there were cracks in the hard soil.
All the life that was left was throbbing in a biological turmoil.
The cycle has repeated year over year for as long as we know,
Only they survive who realise how to stay alive after each blow.

చరిత్ర నది

ఈ కదిలే నిమిషం హిమమే, 

పొంగి పారదా చరిత్ర నదియై,
నీ ప్రతిష్ట పర్వత సమమే,
నిలువదా భావి తరాలకు సారధియై.

This moment passing by us is like a drop of snow, which shall eventually flow down as a river of history. Our glory is like that of a mountain, (from which such a river shall spring) which would stand as a guiding stone to the generations to come by.

An expression of my overconfidence that my glory shall stand forever like mountains as time trickles by like rivers (Young blood).

Reposted from 2011-12.

ప్రతి నదికి గమ్యం సంద్రమే,
కాలం చేసెను మధనం కవ్వమై,
చివరకు కురియగ వర్షమే,
కరుగదా ప్రతి పర్వతమూ ఇసుకై.

Every river that flows shall reach the sea, where it shall be churned uniformly. And when the water returns again, as rain, wouldn’t such rain melt these mountains away into thin sand?

An expression of my understanding that many such glorious and heroic pasts have faded away in the flow of time, and most glories cherish.

Why?

When I ride my loved bike between two cars,

Why not get crushed like a foil between the dies?
Why not end up amidst those glittering stars,
Like a forlorn forgotten twinkler in the dark skies?

There’s a poison bottle somewhere under the sink,
Why should I not pour a shot and sip my drink?
Why should I run a rat race amidst such stink,
When I could be gone in a day if not a blink?

Tell me why, Oh tell me why,
Tell me why I shouldn’t die.

Choosing a gift? 🎁

As humans mature, they tend to interpret life as a series of events often disconnected from each other, which becomes clear when we read the biographies or autobiographies. These mostly independently events are then intricately linked to form a flow to the story we all believe (and take pride in) that we have to tell it to the upcoming generations. Off topic, this single ability to learn from someone that walked this planet 500 years ago because of the robust communication channel that exists between us is a distinct advantage humanity has over other species.

These happenings and events in our life are often commemorated by dates, photos, videos and gifts. And while the first three are pretty standard, gifts and giftings have a lot of meaning. Or at least, had a lot of meaning. Until, we, as a society collectively stripped it of this meaning and made it a ritual. A mere ritual where we see
(A) A person shopping for a gift based on budget, taking recommendations from the executives around the store, and often gifting inorganic products that neither convey their emotion nor resonate with the taste of either of the parties
(B) A person deploying another person with a standard set of instructions to shop for the most generic gift the receive will receive on that occasion
(C) Gift cards because one does not want to take the pain of carefully curating a gift but also doesn’t want their gift to end up as a showpiece in the urban dungeon.

I’m not discrediting the ritual per se, as most generic gifts in formal occasions are representatives of the common emotions that many feel during certain common events. For examples,
(A) Gifting a bouquet of roses for most welcomes and congratulations for emotions that fade over time and always come with thorns of adjustment and adaptation (during welcomes) or efforts and pain (during congratulations)
(B) The whole ceremony of marriage which often involves adorning the other with a piece of metal (at least in Hinduism and Christianity) to evoke emotions for as long as the human lives.
(C) Chocolates and sweets on occasions that are momentary for the other party, just like one’s achievement is a matter of least concern for the other party
(D) all the silverware and showcase items gifted in marriages and housewarming ceremonies to contribute to the quality of life of the receiver as well as become a memorabilia
(E) as seen in south India, gifting regular kitchen utensils with names of dead etched on them, to represent that the said ancestor shall be memorized as long as the utensil stays.
(F) literally all graveyard stones serving as memoirs that shall not fade in a 1000 years or so time period.

Rather, I’m interested in asking you to think about the following aspects in the life of the other person before choosing a gift like timeframes and functions, before the budget and shopkeepers suggestion. How? Well,
(A) timeframe - of the occasion. Hours/days for victories and achievements, Days/months for birthdays, years/decades for ceremonies, lifetime for graduation/marriage/childbirth. Choose a gift that shall be a representative of this timeframe
(B) Function - as a usable (consumable) product which will add value to receiver’s life and perish over time or a storable memorabilia that shall never be touched and looked consciously upon rarely. In selecting the latter, one should always focus on the relationship involved and personalize based on the emotion they wish to invoke.

Pro-tips:
(1) Personalized gifts are always recieved with more warmth and affection.
(2) Always explain your logic to the receiver (if you have had any).
(3) Try to learn how the receiver treats such presents and reflect accordingly.
(4) If you are financially incapable of reaching to their standard, prolly drop in a letter that they shall cherish more than the gift itself.

Happy gifting!!! 😁😁😁

The Tunnel

A fresh morning, the sky was clear,
birds chirping and cooing with no fear.
My little home in the countryside farm,
and I woke up fresh without an alarm.

I pulled the running shoes over my feet,
And set out to find a fine turkey’s meat.
I walked until I stumbled upon a peacock,
Chasing which I ran into the mountain rock.

It must’ve been a modern concrete cave,
Abandoned, yes, definitely a stenchy grave.
I do not remember whence I lost my shoes,
Nor can I recall if I had more paths to choose.

Nevertheless, gone was the fresh air breeze,
The other end of tunnel just appeared to freeze,
I was walking in darkness on wet stones,
Perhaps, they smelt like scraped dry bones.

Thirst and nausea took over my ability,
and I ran to the other end in insanity.
I could see the snakes moving on the wall,
And then I felt a long weightless fall.

I fell into a pit of darkness and slime,
lost myself in a void of space and time.
I felt around for steps to climb upon,
the last ray of hope was now all gone.

Lost, shattered, tired, trying to cope,
Hoping to randomly find the magical rope,
back into the tunnel of blood and bones,
Of distant frozen ends and eerie tones.

Maybe, just maybe, I shall find a way to the pit’s top,
Think of it, oh! What a glory…
Someone somewhere says “ hey, it’s just a pitstop”
Heh, who even knows my story???