A morning in the woods

I wake up

To the pitter patter

A hail here, a hail there

Of rain on the tin cabin roof

While the kids are still asleep

And Dora lays by the door

Wagging her thick bushy hair

I step out to sit in the swinging chair

How far am I from home?

Not very

Without wifi

Without a worry

About the mess on the island

About what to cook

for lunch

For dinner and sundry

The unending heaps

Of dishes and laundry

The night before

I slept with a thought

I would wake up 

To Sun Rays beaming

From the Maples, 

Oaks and Pines

But it’s a rain all I need

For this parched heart and soul

On A morning in the woods

A morning in the Woods

Is all I need!!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

Not so long ago
I thought it was...
climbing those Guava trees
One in the front yard
one in the backyard

Not so long ago

I thought it was

When Nanna chopped off

Coconut heads

And I drank out of them

without a glass or a straw

pretending to slurp

Palm wine raw

Not so long ago

I thought it was....

When we dug into mangoes

Hidden under heaps of hay

On Summer Mornings & evenings

On noons and nights

Under beds

Inside Gunny bags of rice

Not so long ago

Did we sleep in open air

Under the guava tree

on wired cots and

On Terrace tops

Shooing away mosquitoes

and Monkeys

Not so long ago

I thought it was

when jasmines adorned

my unruly hair

Not so long ago

I thought it was

Life just happened...

Sitting at my doorstep

staring at the dark sky

and a silver lining of the moon

on a humid Southern evening

I reminisce all those days

That went by

Not so long ago....

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

My mom was/is a tailor not by passion or choice but to survive. As a tween and an older child, I always kept guard of her at her tailoring shop. In free time or holidays, I would help her by hemming the blouses with my nimble fingers. Many a times, I tried to sort the threads and arrange them. It's quite a boring job to do but a busy mind is never bored, right? For everyone, they may just be a clump of threads but for me......

I tried to untangle them
from age very little
Some cut my hand
some cut themselves
Some curled at the edges
Some were stubborn
unwilling to untangle

I had to cut them
like a baby's umbilical cord

like a barber

like a piece of cloth

like a lawn mover
like a tangled thread

I tried to reason why?
Why women continue
in their valueless marriages
with worthless husbands

I tried to reason why?
she cannot live with him

I tried to understand why?
she cannot live without him

I tried to find the answers
for some of life's
tangled relations

Why do people drift away

Once together

Now apart forever

Why do sisters

become strangers?

Why do best of friends

are not best any more?

I tried to untangle them
like Mom's tangled threads
I keep trying
hoping to find answers
one day.....

My questions lay answered
like my mom's tangled threads!!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

You know you have a teenager
When he wears knee-length socks
on Sliders and shorts

You know it's weird
But he wears a hoodie at home
a Jacket when it's 90 degrees
And shorts when it's freezing

You know he's as hungry as a bear
When there isn't a grain left
of any crap, you pack for lunch

Only a teen would respond
nonchalantly
when you call him a donkey

You get your shock of the day
when he comes by and asks,
"Do you need some help?"
You wonder, "What's wrong with him?"
And he says:
"You just want me to be busy..so I ask"

You would want to knock his head
when he conspires with his dad
"Don't give too many choices to Amma..
Like the brick color of the house"

You feel it when he circles
in the kitchen like a fly
That he wants to unload
mushy mushy secrets
of his heart

You know only he could be
So brutally honest
about your hysterics
and lame jokes

You know there is no one
who could drive you up the wall
shoot your BP
higher than him

You fight, you bicker
you hiss, you blackmail
you laugh, you love
You continue
to grow together
With each year....

Wishing you a Hundred more Birthdays and wishing that it only gets better by each year!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

This is to all my dear busy moms of the world who take guilt trips round the clock. It's Okay!

To those moms
who wake up to a hurricane hit home
whose sink is piled up
with dishes dirty and greasy
It's okay
Home isn't a museum

To those moms
who walk their kids to school
braless, in PJs and flipflops
wrapped in an age-old jacket
It's okay
It's not a photoshoot after all

To those moms
who have to skip PTAs
to meet a project deadline
Who skip field trips
to save the day for a sick child
who miss watching and cheering
Soccer and Basket Ball matches
It's Okay
The kid will survive

To those moms
who run to the stores
for milk and bread or eggs
in unwaxed legs on a Capri
in shabby hair and sunken eyes
It's okay
None but you stayed up late
with a Colicky baby

To those moms
Who are late to work
yet a pit stop at Starbucks
Dialing into daily status calls
Who work from home
eating breakfast at 11 and lunches at 3
It's okay
The Company doesn't run on a person

To those moms
Who pays a late fee
for library books and class photos
It's okay
You aren't harming anyone

To those moms
Who chose career over kids
Who chose kids over career
It's okay
The kid will understand one day

To those moms
who spend half a day
at nails or the spa
who leaves her kids
with a babysitter
to have a drink with her Gfs
It's okay
To do something for yourself

To those moms
Who leave their kids
in India or elsewhere
With grannies or nannies
It's okay
Each have their own battles

To those moms
whose kids succeed
and whose don't
It's okay
Not your fault

To all the moms
who strive day and night
who fight tooth and nail
who put their family first
who eat half their meals
standing or walking
who are mother hens
It's Okay. It's going to be Okay!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

When I laughed
people said
It sounded like 
a goat's bleat
One said 
it sounded like 
the gears of a bus
Few who loved me
loved my laughter too
nonetheless how
hysteric it is
Fun some did
for sure
little did I care
back then and now
for I love to laugh
they way I laugh;

Now a miniature of me
she laughs
the way I do
A goat's bleat again
the same hysterics
the exact wave
of up and down
it flows
through the bones and veins
and echoes
through the walls and hallways
the giggles continue
dawn to dusk
each day she grows
the laughter grows too... 

Wishing the lil devil of laughters a very Happy 9th Birthday!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

One woman 

lets another down

One judges the other

for being black, brown 

fat and thin

One is ignorant

One is innocent

let her be it

One is careless

One is carefree

One is careful

we are all not the same

One gossiping about the other

for not working or

for overworking
let her make the choices

One is scorned upon

for speaking up

one for being silent

One drinks, one dances

One dresses up, one doesn't

each to her own

One fights, One gives in

each has a battle

going on

When are we going to be ONE?

Stand up for ourselves?

Stand up for each other?

Until then, 

What's a Happy women's day?? My foot!

It's all nothing but a
big bag of bullshit!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

He's not the one to buy Chocolates and Roses

But would fill up the gas on a cold winter evening

He's not the one to surprise 

with moonlight dinners or candle lit whispers

He lets me have my evenings 

my gossips with girlfriends

If I am a sucker for surprises, he tags along

Wonders he does on the least expected days

 Cleans the dishes and ponder I do, 
"Could there be a better day than this?"
He never gets a Birthday Card or cake
I learned over the years to care less
And he when I self spurge

Not that he's perfect, Not that I am

We have our own quirks
I love books, perfumes, shoes and everything colorful
and the new found passion for Mallu movies
He's a simple soul who's happy 
with his sports and Clicking pics
He drives me up the wall, I drive him nuts

Yet we manage to get it out, on our evening walks

He's not on my Facebook, neither me on his

We love our own space

The kids do despise, for we are on the same pace

when it comes to them of course

So, would I say, I love you my Valentine?

No, I would thank you though

for being reticent when I look at you for an yes or no

for listening to my sleep deprived stories
each and every morning
Rather pretend that you do
for letting my crazy self be as crazy as I am.
Here's a Happy Valentine's to you and me

Friends ask me at times, "Are you happy?"

and I reply: "Could be better, could be Worse"

P.S: We are not the couple who would murmur sweet nothings and I love yous. We are either too shy or too old to say it any more.

Image Courtesy: Upstore.me

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

You remind me...

you remind me

of those monsoon months

You remind me

of the sultry afternoons

of the thorn scratched arms

and prickled finger tips

You remind me

of mom's warnings

food is not fed with my hand

You remind me

of the circles and swirls

and tiny flowers

You remind me

of the amateur designs

with matches and broom sticks

on twilight evenings

You remind me

of the sugar syrup

and lemon juice

pressed on sticky palms

You remind me

of the late nights

in hostel rooms

You remind me

of the sun and Scorpio tattoos

on lean fair arms

on Sunday noons

You remind me

of the sleep laden eyes

of a newly wed

You remind me

of the last days I spent

in my maternal abode

You remind me
of yesteryears and more
of an era bygone!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

You were there

far from the bay

You stood as 
the image of my dreams

You lured with 

your greenery and slopes

the curvy roads

the umpteen parks and

cozy neighborhoods

I found love

I read books

I drank wine

I wrote poetry

all in your name

You are the rainbow

of my stained glass class

Of saturdays

mornings and noons

of the dvds at the desi bazar

You were the pink sunsets

of orange and purple hues

that made me jump

out of my car

to stand and get lost

into the darkness of

september nights

You are the foundation

where my career build

You were the long walks

behind

the falls at willow creek

You are the chirping bird

on the creekside drive

Sutter, Bidwell,

Empire Ranch, Riley

each street

I know by heart

Home we thought

you could be to us

But some things they say

are not meant to be

that way

I hear the echoes from
a remnant of my heart
on bright springs,

hot summer days
foggy amber dawns

and crisp winter nights!!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

She was thirty four,

When she became a grandmother

as old as I am today

She folded her black long plait

into a bun

as a symbol

for new found promotion

I was her solace

for years to come

from the indifferent husband

and growing daughters and son

Her muscled arm

becomes my abode

And her white fleshy belly

my nest to rest

I would wrap my legs

around her whole body

I grew from two to twenty two

And still clung to her soft belly

with a hand on her chest

and she would say

I can't bear it anymore

your hand is too heavy

She slept in my bed

re-telling tales

of sleepless nights,

of hidden secrets

in deep crevices

of her enlarged heart!

To this day, Jayamamma;

I still keep getting dreams

of you;

When I see my little daughter

cleaning after everyone

picking up things on her way

a spitting image of your persona

You remind me

for that glass of water

before each meal of the day

when I lazily slouch

legs stretched on coffee table

on Sunday mornings

I knew you were partial

to this first grand child

for her chirpy words

and fairer tone

Yet, I craved

for that biased love

I thought I had you all

for myself

until the day I parted;

Little did I know

I would not come to see you

for that one last time ever!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

She is the mother

of two crazy daughters

Crazy she is

as her daughters are

She is their best friend

in smiles and sorrows

She makes messy kitchen

and messy cupboards

but never minds

when they clean after her

Lazy in bones

easy in genes

She is a careless cook

whose dishes are delicious

She is a charitable bowl

who would give away

your unused box of bangles

or that expensive pair of jeans

She would count

missed phone calls

to missed periods

Friends she has

are plenty

in every city

Heart she has

that gold can't match

In service she is

a sister to Mother Theresa

She is a pillar of strength

an arm to rest

She was a dad, a mom;

a Sister, a friend

Tons of pride

though she has

Every tantrum we throw

She takes in her stride

She could be Tom

She could be Jerry

She could be a tooth fairy

She fought a family
a village, a system
so I could write
these few lines

She is fun,

and at times
She can make you stun!!!

Happy  50th Birthday to my rainbow, my sunshine, my thorn in the flesh, my strength, my weakness, my everything!!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

The pleasant breeze

the hush wind

that touches my cheek

the fresh sweet air

that floats my hair

With each leaf falling

with each sweep of wind

makes me remind

It's time for fall again

heavy clouds rolling by

This sudden rain 

on a summer evening

the stillness of everything

and the serenity 

of the late evening

I smell the scent of mud

with each drop of rain 

on the tired earth

filling its thirst of the year

I miss you my love 

I miss my hands around your neck

I miss my head on your chest

listening to the rhythm of your heart

I miss you time and again

on this night of summer rain!!

Image courtesy: Google Images

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

Our meeting is a dream
that ran like a stream
which never ends
it did seem;

In that dream...

I see your silhouette,
like a mirage in places
filled with populace

I feel your presence, 
on a dusky evening;
Leaning on your shoulder
we watch together
the orange ball of fire
go down the horizon
against the magenta skies

We walk hand in hand
into the woods
whispering nothings

In that dream...

I see our
shadows flickering
on the full lit silvery moon

I hear
The beat of our hearts
with one soul
I hear the rhythm of our breaths,
the music of our silence
echoing into the expanse
of the mundane night!!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

We!!!

When you asked me,

what am I to u?

Then I asked myself

what am I to you?

It was the moment

I learnt

There is no you

You are me, within me

I am you, within you

There is no you

there is no me

It is only we

which is us!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

You entered like

a fresh spring breeze

only to linger,

with the aroma

of your sweetness;

leaving an impression

that won't fade

like a passing cloud

In a short span

you've been there

in times of need

and distress,

In moments

happy and sad;

I'll be missing you

my friend

For babysitting,

for packing last minute lunches;

For shopping,

for cooking

without tiring;

Whenever I pass building 11

Whenever I flip through my phone

and find your name;

I know you aren't here,

yet, I can feel you

around me

Today, I bid adieu

with a heavy heart

Hoping we meet again

sooner or later

I repeat

Time and again

I will miss you my friend!!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

I take my little one

to the play area

near the mail boxes

She jumps with joy

shouts, yayyy!!!

She wants to go

on the yellow slide

I nod my head

in approval

She says, amma

I get a current chock!!

I smile in amusement

I let her go by herself

There stood a couple of moms

watching their kids play

They ask if I am new here?

I smile and say no

Disinterest draws on me

Resigning myself

I sit on the bench

watching her play

When I look at them

something takes me

down the memory lane

To the days when

I was new on this land

I would take my son

to the pool area

to make new friends

for him and me

To those innocent evenings

looking forward

to meet people, 

exchange tales..

Gawking at Gerbers

debating on the best diapers

Now I seldom have

an iota of interest

To meet new moms

make new friends

anymore, with anyone

What has changed?

I ask myself

Is it me? Is it they?

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

My mind is racing

of words unuttered;

My body is pacing

with muscles unstretched;

My thoughts are lacing

of feelings unexpressed;

My feelings are stashing

of moments unfelt;

My heart is aching

of wishes unfulfilled;

I begin to start living
as I hope
My pains will be healing

With each day passing!!

Pic Courtesy:  momsoffredericksburg.com 

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

He was the darkest boy

 in my class

I was the fairest girl;

He was a genius,

I was just better

than clumsy;

Yet I had a crush on him

A crush that would melt my heart

at his sight

My eyes on the board

My focus on the person

sitting behind me

He had a habit

to stretch his hand

and hold the desk

with his pink palms

All I wanted to do

was just lean back

slowly yet smoothly

to rub his fingers

and he would pull them back

in a jiffy

I would just wait

to turn and say sorry

I knew well

All I would get

was a grumpy look!

One fine morning,

I was early to school

only to find

his school bag open

With a pounding heart

I take that note book

of the half read poem

Even before I finished it

He appears like a gin

In time to snatch it

And warn me

not to touch it again

Today,

When I speak to him

after nineteen years;

I hear him say my name

on the phone

He still manages

to flutter butterflies

in my heart!!

P.S: Does your first crush still do that to you?

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom

I want you to sit with me,

in silence;

To feel the solitude

in the gush of

fresh morning winds

waiting for the rising sun;

In between the Shasta Mountains,

watching the stillness

of the Shasta Lake;

I want to

embrace the vastness

of the Sky above me,

the earth beneath me,

and the peace around me

in unison!!

P.S: Dedicated to a friend who took me back to my teens again and feels I am a zephyr over the mountains!!

My Poems

Posted By Found In Folsom