a little romance with life

Ode to the Giant Colorful Umbrella You look like a rainbow that got trapped between The thick webs of a silly spider who did not know Of the magic that happens when the rain and sun Meet once in a while; You are a lantern house in the night under the Street bulb, shining your colors so strongly, I Bet from really far away I look just like you A rainbow colored girl. And it’s magical how you have space for everyone My friend, and her friend, and for the lady on The street who forgot her rain protection at home, You shall prove a good wingman some day. And I had Always been the rain girl, the one who prides In her ability to jump over puddles And finds happiness in the smallest of things Who would have thought I’d find my joy In you You giant rainbow umbrella.

I am alone In the walk by the cars that shine their headlights Throwing their glow at my entire body; in the sounds Of the horns that pass, screaming for someone To notice their cry; in the mist of the smoke; in the heat, And the after-rain cold; in the fire of the sun; in a Raincoat with drenched feet; and in the music That is always there but never really there with me. I am alone. In my joys that I feel scared to share, sometimes Because someone else seems to be having a bad Day; sometimes in my sadness because who wants To add to someone else’s tearful load; in The petting of a beautiful brown eyed coffee-colored Dog who needs me so badly sometimes that he makes Me walk away; I wish he could learn to be alone. I am alone. In my body, my skin, my being; there is only One heart that belongs to me and it is mine; there Is only one soul pretending to be living so many lives, Only one mind that walks in one direction, needing One kin...

An Ode to Food What a tragedy it is to have forgotten The exquisite names of meals that had once Rolled down my tongue, made my lips curl Into a toothy grin, and how it had once made My belly feel so full, I couldn’t care if my Heart felt empty; these names seemed to have Jumped off the edge of my brain- now all I Know of food is rotis and curry, and dal , a Little bit of dosa and idli ; the menu of the Chinese restaurant near my house, the fried Delciousness can now only be found in the Stains of my diary entries; and the utterly butterly Punjabi paranthas that I could once eat Four at a time, are such a distant memory; The break up with that plate of momos, how We once used to meet every day;  there was once Andhra pickle in my room, we had a date with Rice and curd; once there was biryani with shahi Paneer , we would just eat without saying a word; Months back there was a home, the fridge always Leaking with fruits, and cucumbers...

The first time your heart broke you realized That something inside you actually hurts, the ‘break’ is not Just a mere metaphor; And when it broke so many more Times you started thinking that you were no Longer a whole being but broken pieces floating in a Complete-looking body; Each person came like a star in The moonlit sky of your life, but each new one got duller And so you’d cry, basking in the loneliness of your own Moonlight; but you know, you shine, so don’t you ever Fall in love with just a flashlight, and never let anyone tell You to have just a bite, and never tell yourself that less is Enough when you deserve more than you think you deserve; So wait for everything you’ve always wanted, and I’ll pray You get it (with a little bit more); till then listen to all the Romantic songs you want, all the movies that give you hope, And look at every passer-by asking yourself “Could this person Be the one?”; give your heart one time, two times, too ma...