मन

कभी चंचल कभी सौम्य
कितने भाव बदलता है
कभी काला कभी निराला
कितने रंग बदलता है ये मन

कभी गहरा कभी सतही
कितने मर्म छुपाता है
कभी जिज्ञासू कभी शिथिल
कितनी गुत्थियाँ खोलता है ये मन

कभी आहत कभी हर्षित
कितने घाव भरता है
कभी अजेय कभी पराजित
कितने युद्ध लड़ता है ये मन

कभी दुपहरि कभी शाम
कितने दिन गिनता है
कभी पतंग कभी धरा पर
कितनी उड़ाने भरता है ये मन

कभी विह्वल कभी विभोर
कितनी अठखेलियाँ खेलता है
कभी सुरमयी कभी नीरस
कितनी कवितायें लिखता है ये मन

The Stone Hunter

Once upon a time there lived a hunter. He was strange and had a quirky charm about him. He had a fierce dog named Obsidian. The savage beast had large fangs and shrewd alert grey eyes. His fur glistened black by daylight and glowed silver by night. People in the hunter's village kept their distance from the duo partly in awe of the hunter and partly in fear of his dog. Obsidian was as loyal a companion as can be, and despite his formidable exterior, had a kind heart. The hunter had no worldly possessions, no land, a little hut in the name of a house and no family. All he ever dreamt of was travelling far and wide, without having a care in the world. Obsidian a bit of a wanderer himself, curbed his lust for freedom and stood by his master through thick and thin. He never let the hunter out of sight. They hunted together, sat by the sea shore cooking the day's catch together and fell asleep by the fire in front of their hut at night only to wake up at sunrise to prepare for a new day together. The hunter would throw spears and stones at a make-believe prey and Obsidian would run energetically to retrieve the non-existent dead animal. Once their morning practice was over they would take a dip in the sea and have left-overs of the previous night for breakfast and start towards the forest to hunt.

One day while they were hunting they came upon a gnarled tall tree. They couldn't tell what tree it was as it was loaded with hundreds of branches each bearing a different type of leaves and fruits. They walked around the tree mesmerized staring up towards the top that was partially hidden by clouds. At the other side of the tree trunk they saw a hole in the trunk. The fearless hunter put his hand in the hole and felt something cold and smooth touch his fingers. startled he withdrew. But curiosity got better of him and he decided to get the mysterious object out. He closed his fingers around the rounded object and pulled it out. Now, our hunter had never seen gold before. Nor had poor Obsidian seen something like the intricately carved little jar in his master's hand before. They gazed at it enrapt for what seemed like an eternity. The hunter relived each moment of his past. He remembered himself as a little boy in his mother's arms, crying for a drowned wooden toy. He saw himself trailing behind his father to the jungle as he learned hunting. He had never enjoyed hunting as child but grew up to accept who he was destined to be. He saw his father set out on a boat to the sea and his mother waiting by the ocean for days for him to return. He remembered being hungry and hunting rabbits from the forest and cooking them for his mother and himself while they waited for his father to return. He could see his mother going back to their hut, wiping tears. He could see everything after that, from how she fell ill and left him alone to fend for himself to the day he went to the village to exchange his few pots and pans for some winter clothes. As he swam in and out of memories the day settled into an orange evening. The sun went down and he looked around, his reverie suddenly broken by distant sounds. He turned around and couldn't believe his eyes when he saw strange tall structures all around the forest. In fact the forest had shrunken and he could see strange chariots whizzing by. He ran around looking for his hut at the end of the forest, all he saw was a crowd of serpentine roads, cars, people milling about and tall buildings. Of course he didn't know what they were called but the hunter found himself all lost in New York City's Central Park. The only familiar being standing by his side was Obsidian. Relieved at seeing his mate by his side, the hunter began walking aimlessly in the park. Obsidian was as amazed with the inexplicable change surrounding them as his master and looked around in disbelief.

AS the sun was going down behind the trees, the hunter sat down tired and looked in the direction of the walking trail at the people walking by. These humans were nothing like the people in his village. They wore colors other than brown and grey of animal hide and appeared wondrously beautiful. He felt someone walking towards him from behind and tensed to face the stranger. As he turned ready to tackle his enemy he was surprised to see the prettiest girl he had ever seen in his life. She wore a dress of the color of moon and had hair the color of the golden jar he had discovered this morning. She had beautiful big brown eyes that sparkled and smiled. He fell in love with her. She spoke in a strange language and offered him some food and a sweet liquid to drink. She gave some to Obsidian too and did not appear scared of the dog at all unlike most people he had seen in his village. He reached out for her hand and told her about how he felt about her in his language. The girl just stared at him as if she understood every word. Then she spoke in a tongue he understood and said "Hunter, you are the person I had been waiting for, for centuries. Now that you have finally come I cannot let you go. You will freeze here in stone along with your loyal dog and stay with me forever."

And from that day until now the hunter stands in the central park with Obsidian at his side, waiting for a visit from his beloved.

I gave you my heart

I gave you my heart
Glad you carry it safe in yours
Now I know why I feel the pain
Every single moment you are gone
For you keep a part of me from me.

2009 Missing

It's a shame! I did not post a single blog in the year 2009. I was away to far off places and I was missing home. That sapped all my energy. Now am back, alive and kicking again. So here's to 2009...

2008 ended on a mixed note. There is a new addition to my family - my little niece. There was a sad incident around October which is difficult to get over but as the wise said "time cures the worst of wounds". Then there was a white Christmas and the dawn of a new year.

2009 saw the arrival of my second little niece. We are so blessed!

I worked, traveled around, went skiing, driving, cruising, clubbing and had fun. There were windfalls and pitfalls all the year but I made it back home and in good time to gather round with the family for festivities and merriment.

Thank you God for all my blessings and hope you will help me overcome what I have lost as you always do.

I wish you enough

[recd from a friend...]

Recently I overheard a Father and daughter in their last moments together at the airport. They had announced the departure.
Standing near the security gate, they hugged and the Father said, “I love you and I wish you enough.”
The daughter replied, “Dad, our life together has been more than enough. Your love is all I ever needed. I wish you enough, too, Dad.”

They kissed and the daughter left. The Father walked over to the window where I was seated. Standing there I could see he wanted and needed to cry... I tried not to intrude on his privacy, but he welcomed me in by asking, “Did you ever say good-bye to someone knowing it would be forever?”
“Yes, I have,” I replied. “Forgive me for asking, but why is this a forever good-bye?”
“I am old, and she lives so far away. I have challenges ahead and the reality is - the next trip back will be for my funeral,” he said.
“When you were saying good-bye, I heard you say, ‘I wish you enough.’ May I ask what that means?”
He began to smile. “That's a wish that has been handed down from other generations. My parents used to say it to everyone...” He paused a moment and looked up as if trying to remember it in detail, and he smiled even more. “When we said, 'I wish you enough,' we were wanting the other person to have a life filled with just enough good things to sustain them.” Then turning toward me, he shared the following as if he were reciting it from memory.
“I wish you enough sun to keep your attitude bright no matter how gray the day may appear.
I wish you enough rain to appreciate the sun even more.
I wish you enough happiness to keep your spirit alive and everlasting.
I wish you enough pain so that even the smallest of joys in life may appear bigger...
I wish you enough gain to satisfy your wanting.
I wish you enough loss to appreciate all that you possess.
I wish you enough hellos to get you through the final good-bye...”
He then began to cry and walked away.