10/01: Shadows of Yesterday
Long after days of old are gone,
Long after rainbows have bitten the dust;
The shadows of times that still do live,
Follow me, ignorant of what pain they give.
The dark reminders of those ages;
And those dreams that in pursuit were lost;
The long gone pictures of times of glee,
And the now far away castles of reverie.
Shadows of the past that can never be changed,
Fate once written, closed and sealed;
The shadows that still do haunt the mind,
And the heart that can no more take the grind.
The wings of time may have carried those days away,
But often my mind still does travel;
Back in time to an era bygone, to bring
Sounds of old bells that still do ring.
And I try to flee, quick and far,
Unaware that those shadows are mine
Those dark things that never will leave,
The melancholy that they will always weave.
I press my mind, slash my sword and try
In vain, to kill those shades of old;
I wring my heart, and my soul does strain,
To be free from shadows and the chain.
I direct myself to avenues new,
Fresh alleys get a heartfelt shot;
I do all I can, I do my very best,
I plunge myself without a rest.
Then I try hard to delve,
Into practices that people would rather shelve;
Something sour, something weak
Or anything murky that I can do,
Perhaps even a drink or two.
But the perennial lesson I fail to learn,
The perpetual truth I do not accept;
The bit I forget, the point I miss:
There will be no such bliss.
And then I realize, Like a truth
That strikes me from the blue,
That try I may, with all my might
There will always be shadows in the light.
There may yet be better days ahead;
There may perhaps be a future bright;
But the dreary shadows of untold pain,
Will never die, will never be slain.
And, the sable memories of ancient seasons,
Will always follow me, wherever I step;
Those shadows will still cling to me,
Like friend and foe, they will forever be.
Shadows that will never know a farewell,
Shadows that never depart;
Shadows that know no other way,
The unending shadows of yesterday.
Long after rainbows have bitten the dust;
The shadows of times that still do live,
Follow me, ignorant of what pain they give.
The dark reminders of those ages;
And those dreams that in pursuit were lost;
The long gone pictures of times of glee,
And the now far away castles of reverie.
Shadows of the past that can never be changed,
Fate once written, closed and sealed;
The shadows that still do haunt the mind,
And the heart that can no more take the grind.
The wings of time may have carried those days away,
But often my mind still does travel;
Back in time to an era bygone, to bring
Sounds of old bells that still do ring.
And I try to flee, quick and far,
Unaware that those shadows are mine
Those dark things that never will leave,
The melancholy that they will always weave.
I press my mind, slash my sword and try
In vain, to kill those shades of old;
I wring my heart, and my soul does strain,
To be free from shadows and the chain.
I direct myself to avenues new,
Fresh alleys get a heartfelt shot;
I do all I can, I do my very best,
I plunge myself without a rest.
Then I try hard to delve,
Into practices that people would rather shelve;
Something sour, something weak
Or anything murky that I can do,
Perhaps even a drink or two.
But the perennial lesson I fail to learn,
The perpetual truth I do not accept;
The bit I forget, the point I miss:
There will be no such bliss.
And then I realize, Like a truth
That strikes me from the blue,
That try I may, with all my might
There will always be shadows in the light.
There may yet be better days ahead;
There may perhaps be a future bright;
But the dreary shadows of untold pain,
Will never die, will never be slain.
And, the sable memories of ancient seasons,
Will always follow me, wherever I step;
Those shadows will still cling to me,
Like friend and foe, they will forever be.
Shadows that will never know a farewell,
Shadows that never depart;
Shadows that know no other way,
The unending shadows of yesterday.
01/06: Distant bells
An unclear face, a special night - now far away, a parting of long ago, an old brush with destiny, maybe an exceptional coincidence or a quaint little meeting - ancient, faint glimpses of unforgotten people, glimpses still strong inside us, glimpses that never die.
When we dig into the past and recollect, we remember - with some fondness - those people who inspired us, people who touched us, people who somehow defined us - rather helped us define ourselves, people without whom we would have been someone else, probably somewhere else. Maybe a favourite teacher, perhaps a dear friend, or perhaps someone extra special. People who somehow stood out in the crowd. People, who in their own little, somewhat mystifying language, talked to us even in silence. The echoes of those words are heard even years later. The light from those sparks that were created is never dulled.
Even in fading light, inspite of the ever increasing speed of life, and the thick mists of the mind, some souls never leave us. Some encounters, however momentary, however fleeting, leave their imprints - imprints, firm and memorable.
The years in between may have dimmed the faces, may have somewhat tempered the strong bonds. But the light that shone from their hearts will always touch us. The spaces that separate us from them, can never break the hidden bridges - bridges that make light of distances too great. Vivid images of those seasons, that almost seemed to span an era of our lives, strike us - suddenly - out of nowhere, and bring with them the legacies that those people left behind.
And, some of them tap our inside in a way that can never be erased. And, when they are gone, we do begin to believe that we may never see their like again, never again see anyone from their tribe. For some people touch us in their own unique ways, which can never be recreated by anyone else.
Such people come along once in a while. Their paths cross ours for a brief duration of time - time which is ours - and theirs - to bring out something momentous, something far-reaching, something exemplary. And, sometimes, that small slice of our life, seems like eternity, seems like a life in itself. So, keep your senses on alert, 'listen' to the signs that people bring along, and never miss that short span of time, that can redefine our lives and the lives of others.
And then comes the bitter part. A heavy-hearted goodbye that leaves us forever sad - a farewell at a graduation party or maybe a farewell at a railway station, a grand farewell at the end of life, or even a farewell that never was. A farewell that was truly tearful even without tears - for some tears never come out. But, away with forlorn thoughts! For, even though we part, we carry with us some lessons, some fulfilled dreams, perhaps a changed outlook, a treasure of memories, that we can someday dwell upon with a smile and a tear, and above all a hope - a hope that someday in the distant future, our paths will cross again.
But ofcourse, destiny may never bring us together again. Fate may never let our eyes meet again. But, distant bells - bells of an old tryst, of sweet meetings and doleful partings, will forever ring in the memory of our hearts.
When we dig into the past and recollect, we remember - with some fondness - those people who inspired us, people who touched us, people who somehow defined us - rather helped us define ourselves, people without whom we would have been someone else, probably somewhere else. Maybe a favourite teacher, perhaps a dear friend, or perhaps someone extra special. People who somehow stood out in the crowd. People, who in their own little, somewhat mystifying language, talked to us even in silence. The echoes of those words are heard even years later. The light from those sparks that were created is never dulled.
Even in fading light, inspite of the ever increasing speed of life, and the thick mists of the mind, some souls never leave us. Some encounters, however momentary, however fleeting, leave their imprints - imprints, firm and memorable.
The years in between may have dimmed the faces, may have somewhat tempered the strong bonds. But the light that shone from their hearts will always touch us. The spaces that separate us from them, can never break the hidden bridges - bridges that make light of distances too great. Vivid images of those seasons, that almost seemed to span an era of our lives, strike us - suddenly - out of nowhere, and bring with them the legacies that those people left behind.
And, some of them tap our inside in a way that can never be erased. And, when they are gone, we do begin to believe that we may never see their like again, never again see anyone from their tribe. For some people touch us in their own unique ways, which can never be recreated by anyone else.
Such people come along once in a while. Their paths cross ours for a brief duration of time - time which is ours - and theirs - to bring out something momentous, something far-reaching, something exemplary. And, sometimes, that small slice of our life, seems like eternity, seems like a life in itself. So, keep your senses on alert, 'listen' to the signs that people bring along, and never miss that short span of time, that can redefine our lives and the lives of others.
And then comes the bitter part. A heavy-hearted goodbye that leaves us forever sad - a farewell at a graduation party or maybe a farewell at a railway station, a grand farewell at the end of life, or even a farewell that never was. A farewell that was truly tearful even without tears - for some tears never come out. But, away with forlorn thoughts! For, even though we part, we carry with us some lessons, some fulfilled dreams, perhaps a changed outlook, a treasure of memories, that we can someday dwell upon with a smile and a tear, and above all a hope - a hope that someday in the distant future, our paths will cross again.
But ofcourse, destiny may never bring us together again. Fate may never let our eyes meet again. But, distant bells - bells of an old tryst, of sweet meetings and doleful partings, will forever ring in the memory of our hearts.
31/03: Memories
Memories - images of endearing and touching, sad and happy moments that are now history. We may lose those moments, we may say goodbye to people, and years will pass by, but memories will always live on. On silent introspective evenings, sad memories of old days may come back to haunt us, may remind us of what could have been, may remind us of the paths that we took and the ones we did not.
The pain of some of those memories may be unbearable. Yet, we need them, for our lives are incomplete without haunting, lingering memories. And we may now smile at some old painful experiences, but deep inside we will always shed a tear or two. And there will be those that will overwhelm us, those that fill us with a sense of deja vu, those that made our yesterday.
And while taking a peaceful stroll in the woods - perhaps on a rainy day, we may remember - with some satisfaction - our achievements, big and small, the missions we accomplished and dreams of bigger things that fell by the way side. We may think about memories of friends and old foes, memories of our alma mater, memories of family unions, maybe of class reunions, meetings and partings, of chance encounters, of cakes and birthday parties, of dinners and treats, of cricket matches - won and lost, of words misunderstood or silent words never understood, of innumerable dissapointments and remarkable successes. Oh, the nostalgic memories of splendid old days!
As we look back on yesterday, someday we will also look back on today. So, make today memorable, and our tomorrow will have enough memories to quench our thirst for them, and hopefully, enough to keep us warm on long and lonely winter nights.
Quoting Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, "The painful memories of the past will shape our future; the moments we cherish last forever in a beautiful array of remembrance".
The pain of some of those memories may be unbearable. Yet, we need them, for our lives are incomplete without haunting, lingering memories. And we may now smile at some old painful experiences, but deep inside we will always shed a tear or two. And there will be those that will overwhelm us, those that fill us with a sense of deja vu, those that made our yesterday.
And while taking a peaceful stroll in the woods - perhaps on a rainy day, we may remember - with some satisfaction - our achievements, big and small, the missions we accomplished and dreams of bigger things that fell by the way side. We may think about memories of friends and old foes, memories of our alma mater, memories of family unions, maybe of class reunions, meetings and partings, of chance encounters, of cakes and birthday parties, of dinners and treats, of cricket matches - won and lost, of words misunderstood or silent words never understood, of innumerable dissapointments and remarkable successes. Oh, the nostalgic memories of splendid old days!
As we look back on yesterday, someday we will also look back on today. So, make today memorable, and our tomorrow will have enough memories to quench our thirst for them, and hopefully, enough to keep us warm on long and lonely winter nights.
Quoting Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, "The painful memories of the past will shape our future; the moments we cherish last forever in a beautiful array of remembrance".
