Thursday 26 May 2011

The Unsung Lullaby


Life’s train hurtles, shakes and moves along
I hold on to the rails for dear life and breath
Surely I heard her whispering in my ear
“Be careful when it brakes, you might fall”

She combed my hair even in unkempt teenage
Said she didn't like lice from my pretty girl friends
I had none, but still I said “Amma, You are right”
I loved the feeling of her hand on my forehead

She never failed to say “be careful”
Fed me by hand even as a six footer
Her recipes were divine- friends testified
But nothing tasted better than her fingers in your mouth

And then her mind sank to depths of darkness unseen
She talked about death as if it were a friend
The winter morning came, she went unseen
But not before ordering milk for the evening sweet

The milk grew cold on the lifeless stove
The house grew crowds-loved and unloved
Fire avenged the divine gift at dusk
Under cold waves the ashes dispersed


But today I hear yesterday’s melodies
The ones that put us brats to sleep
Life’s train hurtles, shakes and moves along
And I wait for the lullabies unsung.

Friday 20 May 2011

Monsoon Hopes


The clouds gather as they do every year
The silence breaks, heaven descends
Parched land overflows with joy
Cracks turn rivulets, green shoots up crevices

Tiled roofs cry out in joy , earth freshens the air
Windows sprinkle the rooms, little hearts kick up dirt
All that you forgot rewinds, why no one knows
Rain does not wash away memories!

I hear your smile,I see your song and the long silences
Moments stolen from alert eyes, those fleeting caresses
The songs that we shared, unknown to the watchful crowd
The tears we shared, as our lives crowded out our love

The clouds have gathered, the parched earth waits
But silence descends, only sadness breaks my silence
My mind overflows with hope and prayer
Will this monsoon bring me spring at last?

Santhosh Rajagopal
18th May 2011