Passion…unbridled

NaBloPoMo 2021

I want to love the things I possess

They stand as testaments to my success

To work hard and earn, every day I strive

I’m grateful to the powers above that I thrive

I know that I have more than enough

Yet I feel compelled to buy more stuff

As new and shiny objects I obtain

I add more things on my list to maintain

Sometimes the distinction is unclear, you see

Whether I own my stuff or my stuff owns me

On my limited time it encroaches, it’s true

Keeping things in order takes energy too

Time and energy that could be better spent by me

On work, with family, or exploring my creativity

Instead I use my free hours to declutter and arrange

Obscene amounts of stuff, it almost seems strange

That all the gadgets and stuff equated with affluence

Need delicate handling and careful maintenance

If I had less possessions to preserve

My energy for social interactions I could conserve

*

I heard something that gave me an epiphany

“Use objects, love people” resonated with me

Material possessions are means to an end

If they occupy time that I was meant to spend

With family, friends, pets, colleagues, and more

I need to evaluate my priorities to the core

I shall start with curbing the urge

To buy more, and then I shall purge

My home, my social media accounts and my mind

Of extraneous stuff, to the hazards of which I was blind

NaBloPoMo 2021

When life throws you down, for an anchor you search

Sometimes help arrives, sometimes you are left in the lurch

Then that anchor you have to conjure

Somehow, out of thin air, you have to ensure

That a way to pull yourself up you find

Create a fictional anchor in your mind

Pretend someone is giving you a hand

Take that proffered help, and then stand

You do have support, it lies within you

Whatever the hurdle, it will carry you through

*

You are your own support system, your own

Cheerleader, you can traverse this journey alone

If someone comes along, enjoy the companionship

Depend on yourself though, don’t let your inner support slip

As you help yourself, the universe will conspire

To make you succeed, you will yourself inspire

To take on challenges new, clear hurdles many more

Keep swimming, the current will take you to the shore

NaBloPoMo 2021

Where is home, I wonder again?

The walls I grew up in no longer remain

The world I left behind has been

Transformed, everything here I’ve never seen

The sky is less clear, the river more muddy

I jostle my brain as the landscape I study

High-rise buildings familiar landmarks hide

If they still exist- the urban sprawl has swallowed wide

Everything that with home my memories associate

Has gone, I look hard for something to which I can relate

*

Familiar faces are nowhere to be found

Twenty-five years have changed everything around

I don’t remember the jarring ringtones

That now emanate from myriad cellphones

Too many layers have given a patina new

To the old town I grew up in, the place I knew

I cannot say there is anything aesthetically pleasing

All available corners the new growth is squeezing..

*

Lost in my reverie I do not realize

When it starts raining, it was not wise

To travel without an umbrella on a day

That had 100% chance of rain anyway

(Growing up, the weather forecast was wildly inaccurate,

I’d subconsciously ignored weather prediction for this date)

Getting soaked, I darted for protection

In to the nearest tea shop- on inspection

The place did not quite my hygiene standards meet

But I was cold, wet and hungry, I needed to eat

So I ordered milky tea and jalebi drenched in syrup too sweet

The smells of cardamom and ginger were for my senses a treat

And the memories I had been trying hard to dig through

Came back to me, tea and sweets held the clue

To unlock golden days, transport me home at last

Tea served in earthenware was a cherished relic of the past

The sweets were prepared in the exact same way

As decades ago, my emotions they could sway

My eyes moistened, as memories I began to taste

My heart had returned home, my journey was not a waste..

NaBloPoMo 2021

I read somewhere that about one in five healthcare workers has left medicine since the pandemic started. This is a poem highlighting the predicament of someone who is thinking about quitting.

Who would I be if this I could not do

My sense of identity draws heavily on it too

Where would I be if not within these walls formidable

Working inside the confines of which I am comfortable

The life-sustaining machines’ hums and beeps

Those sounds would haunt me when I try to sleep

Where would I look for the rush of adrenaline

Except in handling the kind of medical emergencies I’ve seen

How else would I find despair morph into hope

How would I comfort aggrieved people, help them cope

Where would the triumph of science I celebrate

Where would I witness miracles modern medicine can create

*

Tough the path had always been

But the pandemic brought challenges unseen

Defeat more often than success

Death, too excessive to process

The hope from vaccines that loomed large

Appeared to turn into a mirage

Overburdened, exhausted, under-appreciated

Nothing at work leaving me satiated

My cup was emptied out long ago

How to channel motivation, I do not know

*

I want to quit, my breaking point is here

I am losing my raison d’être, I fear

My pesky little inner voice chimes in

Raises the arguments I gave in the beginning

Thus, back to square one I go

I’ve gushed at the highs, with the lows I’ll flow

NaBloPoMo 2021

The world is a scary place, and I

Fear for you, my children, that’s why

I’ve been teaching you all along

To be careful, so that nothing goes wrong

I want to protect you from all the ugliness

That exists in the world, I want to impress

Upon you that you need to be vigilant

Danger can in many forms be present

I worry about physical and mental harm to you

I worry about bullying and school shootings too

**

It is only lately that I have become aware

Instead of just expressing how much I care

My anxieties I am projecting on you

Helpful this is not, that much is true

I want you to be strong, but when I say on repeat

That the world is a bad place, that goal I defeat

I make you too timid, too anxious, to try

New adventures, to fly too high

So go about the world with eyes open wide

With optimism and caution running side by side

NaBloPoMo 2021

The cultural connotations of eating together are obvious, but some people may have life threatening allergies, conditions like celiac disease or even gross intolerances to certain foods that they are unwilling to disclose to casual acquaintances. This poem echoes their sentiment (inspired by a description of life with celiac disease).

It’s that anxiety provoking time for me

When I try to fill my plate and sit down nervously

I was having fun at the party so far, but now

Comes the hard part for me- I cannot allow

Myself to be carried away at the smell and sight

Of gourmet food, I have to ensure I eat right

I am used to it now, actually, it’s easy enough to be judicious

But eating in company, with a spread of food delicious

Is my worst nightmare, I get socially awkward

I try to justify why I am “eating like a bird”

*

I am not on a diet to lose weight, but my

Vociferous explanation no one does buy

When people say one bite would not lead to weight gain

I feel frustrated, it is difficult to explain

Why I cannot partake of this communal activity

Why eating certain things is forbidden for me

No, I am not trying to say the food is not good

If I could eat even a little bit of everything, taste it I would

It is not as simple as making up for calories

With a more intense workout next day, hear me please

I tense up just thinking of the consequence if I

Exercised indiscretion even once, the stakes are too high

If I give into peer pressure and take but a bite

I would be sick pretty soon, I keep that in sight

*

When people finally hear me, to help me they try

They offer to fix something else for me, and suddenly I

Become the object of attention, feeling much worse

For creating such a fuss, my dietary restriction is a curse

I still end up disappointing them anyway

I wish the subject of food would go away

*

Sitting together to eat and sharing food are

The most universal social customs by far

Celebration involves dining together inevitably

What should bring joy provokes anxiety regrettably

Here’s a plea to everyone- if you ever see

Someone looking anxious at a table with a plate empty

Try, if you can, to refrain from offering them food

And if they refuse, know that they are not being rude..

NaBloPoMo 2021

A buzzword these days is burnout

In professional circles often heard about

You are expected to over perform every day

Connected twenty-four- seven you are expected to stay

Strategies to combat burnout are supposed to include

Mandatory coaching sessions that intrude

On your personal time, that should ideally be spent

With family, doing things that bring fulfillment

To encourage employees to eat healthy and exercise

Programs to encourage “healthy competition” are devised

Prizes may be announced for losing most weight

Adding competition beyond work-related metrics to your plate

Well-meaning coaches in seminars try to encourage you

To take up a new hobby, develop an interest new

While you sit there, yawning, wondering yet again

What sense it could make to go through the pain

Of hearing what you know, on a free weekend

If you were not here, time on a hobby you could spend

**

If only the root cause of burnout could be

Addressed by the corporate world effectively!

The more advice and seminars that employees receive

The less control over their lives they perceive

The constant connection with work creates

A milieu for burnout, adding more stress to their plates

There is value in work and value in play

To be able to unplug from work at the end of the day

Not worrying about answering e-mails or fielding calls

Can make a huge difference, though it appears a change small

Leisure is not a one-size-fits-all kind of thing

Expectations exist for work, there should be none for relaxing

NaBloPoMo 2021. Do Good, Kid

You should not be a rebel outright

The establishment you should not constantly fight

But at the same time I want you to know

Do not be afraid to challenge the status quo

When the order of things seems stagnant

When archaic rules no longer appear relevant

When social norms appear discriminatory

When sectarian behavior is rooted in violent history

When environmental insensitivity you see

When science is eclipsed by quackery

By all means, for the right cause, your voice you should raise

Question the norms, forge new pathways

Towards a new order contemporary and just

If something feels wrong, try to address it you must

*

Let me caution you here, though

It is never easy to challenge the status-quo

It is easier to take the path of least resistance

And do nothing, but at the cost of a nagging conscience

You may be labeled a nonconformist or an iconoclast

You may lose friends, become an outcast

The fight could feel lonely and long

But if you follow your heart and have conviction strong

You should carry on, because enduring change does not come

Without perseverance and luck, to extent some

NaBloPoMo 2021 Do Good, Kid!

In a world where attention-deficit has become the norm

It still holds true that in order to perform

At the highest level in any vocation

You need periods of intense concentration

When you achieve the state of flow

Distractions melt away, you’re on the go

Completely absorbed in the task before you

In the moment, you forget about other needs too

The activity itself is rewarding, as you immerse

Yourself completely in it, oblivious of the universe

**

I hope in a world interrupted in ways innumerable

You achieve the state of flow in your chosen activities, you are able

To focus intensely, enjoy complete immersion

Without distractions, without interruption

In the state of flow masterpieces are created

In complete absorption, your mind and soul are satiated

More important than any external measure of success

Being in the flow is about being rewarded in the process..

NaBloPoMo 2021 Do Good, Kid!

You want a straight line, a curved one you find

Despite immaculate planning, your journey is not streamlined

Roadblocks at each step, hurdles along the way

Smoothly you never seem to get through the day

Yet every curveball dodged, every impediment overcome

Is an accomplishment, more confident you become

Stumbling blocks of life at first give you

Disappointment, discouragement, paralyzing fear too

After the initial fear, you pull yourself together

To face the looming challenge strength you gather

You take small steps, with hesitation

As the knots unravel, your initial trepidation

Starts melting away, the path clears up some more

You find yourself in a better place than before..

**

You may keep wishing your problems away

But hurdles in your path static stay

Unless to get through a path you create

You may not find yourself helped by fate…

My dear friend, a highly accomplished woman are you

An excellent homemaker and a doting mother too

Here’s something I would like to suggest if I may

When compliments on culinary skills or motherhood come your way

Please take them as such, please do not try

To explain your work-life balance, to justify why

You have chosen home over an ambitious career

Or why you work part-time- there is no need, my dear

To defend your life choices, just accept the compliment

You should learn to take credit for your talent

*

There are women making strides at the workplace

Challenges in work-life balance they face

If you have found that balance elusive

Take pride in it, we all have different lives to live

Educated, ambitious women feel pressured to excel

In every sphere, we seem to be conditioned to dwell

On the aspects of our lives that are less illustrious

We forget how we are in our lives uber industrious..

**

So here’s my humble request yet again

Accept compliments, from apologizing, refrain

NaBloPoMo 2021 Do Good, Kid

There are days that appear to be

Designed in hell, where you are busy

Beyond capability, it appears

Exhaustion brings you to the brink of tears

Each time you think you can do no more

Another task is added, more complex than the one before

You try to pull together, keep your sanity intact

When all you can think of is quitting in fact

Hungry, thirsty, with muscles all aching

You feel your indomitable spirit breaking

The pace is relentless, there is no pause

There is no time even for self-applause

Maybe if you could stop and appraise

What you have accomplished so far it would raise

Your spirits that in the doldrums lie

But that sliver of time is hard to come by…

**

Such days come and go, and later you think

Of those days with pride that brought you to the brink

Of frustration and exhaustion profound,

Those are the days when your mojo you found

You learnt how to push yourself a little more

You came out stronger than you were before..