What do We Call it?

This is totally like a pocketful of sunshine - kahin koi dost, humsafar, na jaane kya, aur uske shabdon ka tarkash


A leaf falls --And makes noise,
startles the phlegmatic whisper
of a pregnant silence,
In mourning.

Falls, cuts through
the empty stillness of the air,
that once was spirit
Rests on a grave,
of a million footsteps, and more
Feels. Truth, love, betrayal, sorrow,
And everything else,
that those hearts felt.
And the stomachs.

The leaf reverberates
with the echo of their rumbling.
Sleeps. Time turns it yellow.
Another leaf falls. And another.
We call it Autumn,
And walk over it anyway!

Shukriya

Kuch aur patthar uchal diye gaye hain is taraf
Chaliye saman-e-raste ka fir intezam ho gaya

Unke gile shiqawon ki fehrist badi lambi thi
Meri himaqaton ka byora sar-e-aam ho gaya

Saman-e-raaste ka fir intezam ho gaya

The Funny Way of Being Governed

So, someone said couple of years ago, "There is practically no incentive to work in / for the government apart from a hazy image of self / job satisfaction. No one shall pat your back or have a kind word to say when you do a good job time and again. But, the moment you committ THE most trivial of the lapses, they shall hound you and make you feel miserable." To this I had replied, "You must be kidding me, this country runs despite its rulers, the bureaucracy must be a steel frame from within, with a strong adhesive element to it."

Lo behold! Am being forced to think over and over again.

Losing Someone

So .......... what happens when you lose someone you knew, someone who was thrust on you, someone who was always on the radar but never blinked with the ferocity few others did, someone who was acutely aware of your presence and your perceived 'lightness of being', someone you'd like talking to intermittently, someone in whose presence you were both comfortable and otherwise, someone who'd order bread-butter in a restaurant after a gruelling walk, while you were hoping to share a full blown Andhra Thali, someone who'd mention nonchalantly - "waah ! tum apni fiat ko meri motorcycle ki tarah nacha lete ho," someone who'd play cricket with a gusto few could match, someone who was always trying to discover the Midas touch, someone who wasn't worldly wise but garnered love from quarters which mattered, someone who never looked inward, someone who revelled in the art of dithering and taking decisions well past the milestones, someone who was always prepared with a sermon or two at the drop of the hat, someone who always wanted to share and teach.....someone who taught more in his death than life.

You never know where people stand in your life, till they are finally gone....its unfortunate but true.