Oh to be alive

My heart hurt I couldn't breathe, as my eyes skimmed through the report with unease. Quietly without informing a soul, he set out on the road... Sixteen hundred kilometers to his village, all he had was a bicycle & two thousand rupees. Some passersby found him unconscious under a tree. His knapsack intact with two sets of clothes, his adhaar card & a blanket. I choked back tears & gasped, all I managed was a silent plea. Police rushed him to hospital but he left unsung, a hero who just wanted to meet his family. All this in a span of twelve hours as he braved the summer heat. All of forty was he, his wife & two sons will wait endlessly... yet some still sit back in the cool comfort of their homes and declare every now & then, it's tough for them to stay put & breathe, this indeed is 'life's' irony...

In full bloom was I cast away, on a bed of dry rustling leaves I lay. Voices I heard, were loud & clear, though what they said I didn't hear. I wanted to live & do my bit, but suddenly the world felt queer. Something had changed, it didn't feel right, everyone was too occupied... I looked up from where I was, I appreciated the poignant pause. I closed my eyes & thought a while, it was their loss not mine. So I slipped into a deep slumber hoping to wake up unencumbered...

I never thought such a day would come, when I'd have to grapple & rise, yet be on my own. After she left, I was bereft...   starved as if of love &   petrified of the unknown.   You were my friend, my anchor, my sail.   You were the reason I   could go on again.   Lost am I in this instant,   I don't know how   to handle this pain...   It comes in spurts & Oh! does it hurt every now & then? It's like a cold knife cutting me plain. Gnawing at my insides, there's no respite, no calming refrain. In all moments of doubt I  reached out to you... You were my rock, my mirror pushing & urging to reach for the stars, not settle for the mundane. Success for you was a journey, the destination never your claim. Fame was the smile you brought to another's face, as you cringed to cover your own heartache. I  learnt from you to live in the present, I wish I'd had time to roll the dice away. Time you'd said is the greatest teac...

  Standing by the mango tree, he gazed into the vast and bright firmament. Clouds were beginning to gather and seemed to be moving at an inexplicably fast pace, as if swarming the entire universe. He stood rooted to the spot even when a big plop struck him with merciless energy. He hadn’t even changed the angle of his neck, a curious onlooker would have mistaken him for a life-like statue, so engrossed, lost and in a seemingly suspended animation trance was he. A loud clamouring sound startled him out of his reverie and created a severe clash in his already ambushed mind. Ambush yes, for that is what it seemed like to him. A deluge, a kaleidoscopic rush, struck him and he staggered a bit before stabilizing himself by leaning on the mango tree trunk. Sequins, dazzling sequins, a flash, an alluring smile and a swish of the head, are all that it took to clog his mind and heart. It had been a hot and sultry day, he clearly recalled: he had rushed out of the cafeteria where he u...

A swish, a nudge a few palpitations or miscalculations?  Memories come rushing back at every nook & consternation. Shirking off undue frames the soul searches for fresher terrains or amputations. Meandering, mulling or marauding complaints? It evokes a distant constellation. Travelling from one to another, distinct is the evolution. Awaiting, churning & taking on random journeys, it's usually a culmination. What ensues in the moment is what defines one's muse & inspiration. Copyright Suverchala Kashyap

Impressions, imprints are etched deeply on a child's mind, there are seldom things one leaves behind, One such memory is of dad being a story teller & chronicler in spite of  busy times... Sharing one of his write-ups It was a cold & freezing night. Head bent against the wind, he walked briskly on the slippery road. Suddenly, from the corner of his eye, he noticed a vague silhouette. He stopped in his tracks & retraced his steps swiftly. He was shocked as he came face to face with the huddled figure. He sat on his haunches & stared aghast at the emaciated face with sunken sockets, but strangely twinkling, sparkling eyes. He did the first thing that came to his mind, put his arms under the grimy figure & lifted him up, struggling to make him stand. The bag of bones winced & muttered, “What are you doing?” Just in that moment he realized that the bony, wasted creature had a broken back & paralyzed legs. He then cradled him in his arms ...

Sublime & pure, so much to feel, so much to endure. Moving through meandering roads, the path sometimes obscure, the pulse racing, paradoxically, the heart cold inured. Boxed in, caved out, moving on yet into the unknown. The urge to feel, the zeal to know, an urge to go on & just explore. Treacherous time though tempts & tolls... All one does is go on...@Copyright Suverchala Kashyap