“I am fine,” a means to endure every obstacle and thought. This is me walking myself, the dogs, crawling into bed naked, quiet in my weight. I’m the empty bank account, a flickering glow-worm in the dark, A primal scream of being who I am I’m not here, the body speaks at last. If nothing works,…
Category: poetry
the last watch.
after he died, i wore my father’s watch an old bulky HMT you had to wind, and too large for my wrist. i fought my mother for it, Baba used it all the time, when he still had time. it was heavy and real and reminded me of all that i lost. of course i…
Once Upon a Time
Once upon a time, I was a whirling ball of fire, I could outlast the sun, the moon and the stars. I was the centre of the universe, all rivers flowed from me the oceans licked my feet thunder danced for me. I balanced worlds in my palms, Irreverent, incorrigible, difficult. many mantles I proudly…
Another year, 2026.
There was a child and there was a tree A tree her father sat by while she Had her little swing on the side Allowing her the wind, wild and free. The father gave the child freedom, Freedom to be, the sound of her voice Drowning everybody out to say yes And to say no….
Enough
Remember the words we said they were not much but enough. Those nights, the fightswhen I stood corrected were enough, that is exactly whyI think of you every day it’s enough. Something in my heartwill not sway and I never will have enough of you, after all the tearsthe regret and hurt, am I enough? Am I worthy…
Much
“You never will amount to much,” you said quietly. Not acknowledging that quiet is not silence. Unlike the silence that fell when you died for me, absolutely and forever silencing the noise. Quiet calls for attention to the hum of voices in the background, the koel that sings, the wind that whistles, the moon that…
Blazing.
In the silence of the night interspersed by soft snores, a ghost garden is where I walk, waiting to hear a voice that death has silenced years ago. Waiting and hoping each night to dream, of long dead blooms lying scattered as a shadow moves and little tiger baby appears, in the shadow, is it…
This used to be my playground
Drag the inflatable boat out of the room on the side Where the old swing remains, mangled by ropes Drag out the oars, flicking the water hoping The water snakes weave out of the way. Undone, for the first time in years, Swim out and clamber onto the boat, You never forgot how; although joints…
Acute angles.
I. Through street lampsthe Arabian Sea rinses a distant blue while from the shadows the rocks extrude slowly drifting away, out of reach lovers and friends, children and laughter If I am anythingof any meaning, look for me there, among the shallows breathing soft night. II. If I am anything of any meaning, look at the rain as it falls, flickeringagainst the light. To be…
Sailing
I am just a vessel Tossed upon the seas My fathers direct the winds That set my nautical charts To be free. The calm Before the storm, The starlit nights on board The moon eclipsed by clouds The smell of salt and ocean, The wind and the seagull’s cry Crashing on every wave, I seek…
The return
You never return from some things,yet the body carries on. Sometimesit even travels, reflects light, But when you knock, there’s no one home. How did I leave you? With the bitternessand disappointment of innocents.How did I return? Like a womanwho has nothing left to lose or hope for. The mind still plays tricks, But often the hands fall slack,…
ipsita banerjee 