Mimi makes Friends

 Every day is a day for fun,

When Mimi mouse is out on a run,

Finding friends and scurrying around,

With her warm feelings out of bounds!

One day, she met Gregory, a grizzly.

He was big and she was measly.

While she wanted to hear and be heard,

She was nervously short of words!

Next up, she ran into Fatima, the fox,

Clever and smart, but boastful and proud!

Before Mimi spoke, she was put in a box,

“I am not enough” Mimi thought aloud!

Mimi looked for someone her size.

And so Solomon squirrel came along.

But he raced her and chased her thrice.

Mimi felt exhausted and not very strong.

She did meet Rosie rabbit who was sweet,

And expected Mimi to look pretty and neat.

Mimi could no more have one scruffy day.

Mimi was upset as Rosie always had her way.

When Mimi met Cloonie, the coolest cat,

I’ll never have a lonely day, she thought.

In one such night’s party, she fell asleep flat,

Mimi was left behind, and the cats forgot.

So eager to make a friend, but tough luck!

She wanted to bounce and bob, but felt stuck,

Everyone is bossy, everyone’s a bully

Everyone is smarter, I am just silly,

Everyone is pretty, I am just ordinary

So she found all the reasons to sit and worry.

Then Leila, a little ladybird stopped by her.

Fearfully, yet she said, “Hhhello” with a stutter.

“It's okay” said Mimi, "I won't hurt you.”

But Leila wouldn't stay, and away she flew.

Mimi cried, there was no one left to please,

She was all so vulnerable, and easy to tease.

But Fatima came and sat by her, reading a book,

Rosie ran past but stopped to adjust Mimi’s look.

Solomon brought her an acorn from far far away

And Cloonie and her band brought music to play

Mimi felt best when Gregory gave her a bear hug.

Sensing her joy, from across flew in the Ladybug.

Mimi had made friends, she felt happy and smug!

It was now up to her how she’d treat her friends,

Have a chat, or a quarrel, but make amends

Hear them out, agree, but also speak her mind,

Call them bullies or besties, but try to be kind.

Silly Emily

Every morning when the Sun shined through,

Emily would rise and run to the window to see who

Filled the day with bright colours and joy?

It was the Sun, silly, soaring up and high.

All day long the little girls and boys played,

In cheerful sunshine or in the gentler shade.

They picked fallen leaves and sprightly flowers,

And Berries bright in the afternoon hours!

They caught to pet - the beetles and butterflies,

And chased away the bees with their wild cries!

The cats and dogs would dance around in glee.

Oh! The Sunny days,  are just so happy, you see!

At her window, Emily waited thus each morning

Seeking the sizzly Sun from behind the yellow awning

“How could the Sun have so much joy to spread?”

Thought Emily, smitten, “What if he were the man, I wed?”

As the evening set, and she retired to her room,

Her eyes grew weary, burdened with a certain gloom.

Night wasn’t as enchanting as the day was to her.

And if you think otherwise, do write your own poem, Sir!

The chilly winds and their silence made matters worse,

Even the howling hounds couldn’t bear the night’s curse!

Cats were restless and in the darkness, went wild.

The tree leaves rustled, fell to the earth as they piled

There were mysterious whispers and rumours around,

The spirits foraged all night through the lost and found.

And despite his best efforts, there was only so much,

The Moon could do, in the dimly night time as such.

Emily lay awake and unsettled  in her bed at midnight.

Thinking how marrying the Sun would make it all right!

The night and its ways brought so much sorrow,

She had to pack her bags by daybreak tomorrow!

At dawn Emily wore her pink bow and her best dress,

After all, it was the day of decisions, the day to impress!

She carried a basket with sweets, lemonade and ice,

He could forever be hers today, if she played nice.

At the top of the hill on that beautiful day, Emily sat,

And laid out a picnic and went on with her little chat!

“Hey, Mr. Sun! Won’t you join me for a bit, down here?!”

“You must be hot, and I have some ice for you, my dear!”

The Sun melted when he heard her sweet voice,

A little speck in pink, speaking out was quite a surprise!

The Sun said, “How lovely and kind, I must say!”

“But it’s forbidden to be near the earth, so here I’ll stay.”

“Come on now, what could possibly go wrong?”

She asked, “Just come for a bit, it won’t be too long!”

“No one will notice here atop the hill, it’s just us two…”

“Ummm and there’s just one thing I want to say to you.”

“Go on,tell me little one” said the Sun, curiously,

“I’m a bit high up here but I can hear you quite clearly!”

“Ummm… ummm, this may seem a bit crazy, I know”

Said Emily, “I want to marry you and go where you go!”

The Sun laughed out loud, “ Each evening, I go west”

He said “and don’t get even just a moment of rest”

“If you went with me, you would lose every wink of sleep”

“And you’d be a groggy girl who'd really want to weep!”

“Oh, it’s evening already, I haven’t a moment to waste”

Said the sun to a glum Emily, and left in a haste!

She said to herself, “I’m tired, I really need to hit the sack.”

“But isn’t he a rude one!” Thought she as she walked back.

-Megha Vishwanath

Javed Akhtar's poems in Zindagi Milegi Na Dobara

Pighlay neelam sa behta hua yeh sama,
Neeli neeli si khamoshiyan;
Na kahin hai zameen,
Na kahin aasmaan;
Sarsaraati hui tehniyaan, pattiyaan;
Keh rahi hain ki bas ek tum ho yahaan,
Sirf main hoon, meri saansein hain, aur meri dhadkanein;
Aisi gehraiyaan,
Aisi tanhaiyaan,
Aur main sirf main
Apne honay pe mujhko yaqeen aa gaya…

This moment flows by like liquid sapphire
Silence like the blueness of the sea
No Earth below,
No Sky above.
The rustling of the branches and leaves
Whispering that only you are here
Only me, My breath, and my heartbeat
Depth like this (moment),
Loneliness like this (moment)
And me only me
And now I believe… I exist

Ik baat honton tak hai jo aayi nahi,
Bas ankhon say hai jhaankti,
Tumse kabhi, mujhse kabhi,
Kuch lafz hain woh maangti,
Jinko pehanke honton tak aa jaaye woh,
Aawaaz ki baahon mein baahein daalke ithlaye woh
Lekin jo yeh ik baat hai,
Ehsaas hi ehsaas hai…
Khushboo si hai jaise hawa mein tairti,
Khushboo jo be-aawaaz hai;
Jiska pata tumko bhi hai,
Jiski khabar mujhko bhi hai;
Duniya se bhi chupta nahin,
Yeh jaane kaisa raaz hai.

The truth that almost come to my lips
Is clear from my eyes
Sometimes from you, sometimes from me
It asks for words
To give it structure and come to my lips
To dance in the embrace of my voice
But this truth
Is a feeling, just a feeling…
Like a fragrance it floats in air,
A mute fragrance,
That you know is there,
That I know is there,
And is not hidden from this world,
What kind of secret is this?

Jab jab dard ka baadal chaya
Jab ghum ka saya lehraya
Jab aansoo palkon tak aya
Jab yeh tanha dil ghabraya
Humne dil ko yeh samjhaya
Dil aakhir tu kyun rota hai
Duniya mein yunhi hota hai.
Yeh jo gehre sannaate hain
Waqt ne sabko hi baante hain
Thoda ghum hai sabka qissa
Thodi dhoop hai sabka hissa
Aankh teri bekaar hi namm hai
Har pal ek naya mausam hai
Kyun tu aise pal khota hai
Dil aakhir tu kyun rota hai

Whenever the cloud of pain loomed
Whenever the shadow of suffering threatened
Whenever tears filled my eyes
Whenever this lonely heart was afraid
I consoled my heart
Why do you cry for my heart?
This happens everywhere in this world
These dark lonely moments.
Time has distributed them to all.
Some sadness is a part of everyone’s story,
Some sunshine a part of everyone’s life
You cry for an unworthy reason,
Every moment is a new season
Why do you lose your precious moments,
Why do you cry for my heart?

Dilon mein tum apni betaabiyan leke chal rahe ho
Toh zinda ho tum;
Nazar mein khwabon ki bijliyan leke chal rahe ho
Toh zinda ho tum;
Hawa ke jhokon ke jaise aazad rehno sikho,
Tum ek dariya ke jaise lehron mein behna sikho,
Har ek lamhe se tum milo khole apni bhaayein,
Har ek pal ek naya samha dekhen yeh nigahaein,
Jo apni aankhon mein hairaniyan leke chal rahe ho
Toh zinda ho tum;
Dilon mein tum apni betaabiyan leke chal rahe ho
Toh zinda ho tum;

If you carry impatience in your heart then you are alive
If you carry the sparkle of dreams in your eyes then you are alive
Learn to live like the gust of wind
Learn to flow like the stream among the waves
Receive every moment in life with open arms
See every moment as a new beginning
If you carry surprise in your eyes then you are alive
If you carry impatience in your heart then you are alive

Javed Akhtar in Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara

Around the Corner

by : by Charles Hanson Towne
1877-1949, written in 1900


Around the corner I have a friend,
In this great city that has no end,
Yet the days go by and weeks rush on,
And before I know it, a year is gone.

And I never see my old friends face,
For life is a swift and terrible race,
He knows I like him just as well,
As in the days when I rang his bell.

And he rang mine but we were younger then,
And now we are busy, tired men.
Tired of playing a foolish game,
Tired of trying to make a name.

"Tomorrow" I say! "I will call on Jim
Just to show that I'm thinking of him",
But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,
And distance between us grows and grows.

Around the corner, yet miles away,
"Here's a telegram sir," "Jim died today."
And that's what we get and deserve in the end.
Around the corner, a vanished friend.

[My friend Vivek Rajashekar recommended I bookmark this one. I took the hint and met him last weekend :)]

Invictus - William Earnest Henley

If No One Ever Marries Me

If no one ever marries me --
And I don't see why they should,
For nurse says I'm not pretty,
And I'm seldom very good --

If no one ever marries me
I shan't mind very much,
I shall buy a squirrel in a cage
And a little rabbit-hutch;

I shall have a cottage near a wood,
And a pony all my own,
And a little lamb, quite clean and tame,
That I can take to town.

And when I'm getting really old --
At twenty-eight or nine --
I shall buy a little orphan-girl
And bring her up as mine.

by Lawrence Alma-Tadema

Wise words for a Wedding

Megs insists I post this. So, here goes. This was written for a scrap book that went around during a wedding in the family:

As you begin your new "happy married life"
Here is some (perhaps unsolicited?) advice
Even though you're always 'husband and wife'
To each other, say 'Please', 'Thank you' - BE NICE!

In each other's face, space, all the time
Magnifies flaws, issues in your sights
But do not argue for no reason or rhyme-
Only if it's important - PICK YOUR FIGHTS!

There will be pleasure, there will be pain
And all things emotional in this range
Getting married is like being born again
Be very prepared - BE READY TO CHANGE!

It feels new now, beautiful, holds you in thrall
But over time you may tire, get bored, be spent
It takes work to make it work in the long haul
You'll need to REFRESH, REJUVENATE, REINVENT!

Be close, be near to your loved one's heart
But keep some space, SOMETIMES LET GO
"For the pillars of the temple stand apart,
And the oak tree and the cypress grow not in each other's shadow*"

*with apologies to Khalil Gibran