Passion…unbridled

Let nothing ruffle my feathers- let me be

Able to face life every day with equanimity

This is what I hope for as I begin each day

But as infinitesimal roadblocks emerge along the way

The cool as a cucumber attitude I was trying to adopt

Goes out of the window more often than not

Some obstacles are tolerable while others leave me

Frustrated that things are not the way they should be..

**

That is life, I understand, a roller-coaster ride

And I have to learn to just take it in my stride

There are days when solutions are easy to find

Then there are days when life seems particularly unkind

For those days I have to just learn to place

My trust in a higher authority that I can face

All the curveballs that life throws at me

And emerge stronger on the other side definitely

*

I end as I began- let my feathers unruffled stay

As I get ready to begin another blessed day

When you work in a corporate set-up you feel

Most of the time, no more than a cog in the wheel

That you are replaceable is the impression you get

Your stable position can easily be upset..

*

Above and beyond you try to go

At first, but you never get to know

If your efforts are being appreciated at all

Between you and the management there is a thick wall

*

Then one day, out of the blue, you find

The administration has decided to be kind

And recognized your contribution to the workplace

You receive an award and become the new face

Of your organization, this is your moment to shine

If you were going to stay here for a while, this is your sign

*

In order to retain employees prized

Their contributions must be recognized

Individuals make an organization, therefore

They should be made to feel valued more

Why does the ingredient list on my “health” bar read

Like that of a complex chemical concoction indeed

I have difficulty recognizing the names that do not

Appear to have any relation to food- it seems I have bought

A list of chemicals melted together to create

Something deemed edible for my palate..

The caloric and carbohydrate content of this food item is low

But whether its ingredients are healthy, I do not know

Ultra-processed and artificial in every way

This barely seems like something I should eat every day

*

Let me go to the produce section and some staples find

It seems daunting to cook them but I’ve made up mind

Not to eat food with labels unpronounceable

In fact l should eat food that does not need to be labeled

There are ways to eat real food dressed with aromatic herbs

That is infinitely more satisfying and helps to curb

Untimely hunger pangs that follow intake of processed food

Eating real food is essential- with this I conclude

Sometimes when I read or listen to news inspiration I get

To distill my impressions in a verse, lest I forget

The emotions that the piece of news has evoked

In my reaction to that news my words get soaked..

*

Most news is delivered in a manner provocative

To incite a reaction that is almost always negative

I get outraged at the current state of affairs

When I hear news, I’ve recently become aware

That my writing comes across as cynical and pessimistic

Sometimes my tone starts appearing nihilistic

*

When my verses have veered towards the dark side

To catch that before I finalize my writing I have tried

I delete some lines and give a more positive spin

To the issue, I count that as a win

Because on a note of despondency I never want to end

At the conclusion of my verse, hope I want to extend..

There is a rebellious streak in me

That makes me disregard advice doled out for free

How to do my work the right way

How and what to eat, how to exercise every day-

I really do not welcome such advice

On the other hand, it would be nice

If I could get feedback and criticism constructive

When I ask for it, when I look for advice in a manner proactive..

*

There are aspects of my life with which I am highly satisfied

I get more advice to change them, I have tried

To tell people gently that I do not need

Their well-intentioned advice indeed

In all other spheres of life where I ask for advice

If I get a satisfactory answer, it is a surprise

*

In writing this verse, I had the opportunity

To remind myself that I would do unto others what I want done to me

Therefore I resolve not to give unsolicited advice

But if asked for advice, I would try to oblige

(a person who expresses opinions on matters outside the scope of their knowledge or expertise)

You start explaining something you know well, but are interrupted

Your train of thought is rudely disrupted

By your know-it-all colleague who chimes in with an explanation

Stealing your thunder without hesitation

Except, despite the eloquent speech the content

Is woefully inaccurate to a great extent

Your colleague had fibbed to displace you

You’ve seen this before, this is not an action new

Your colleague likes to explain anything under the sun

Sometimes it is annoying, sometimes pure fun

*

It is exhausting to have ultracrepidarians around you

Who hi-jack every conversation and proceed to

Expound confidently on topics they have no idea about

Thinking this gives them tremendous clout

They give opinions with the authority of an expert

Pass judgment on others without effort..

*

Unfortunately in the current era their tribe

Continues to grow, as influencers and leaders they thrive

Watch out for ultracrepidarian experts so you do not get drawn in

To the spiral of their rhetoric, and believe the lies that they spin

Writer

I start a sentence with a half-formed thought

And the sentence takes me on a journey I had not

Anticipated at all- I let the sentence lead me

To write the whole paragraph, or verse, as the case may be

My writing acquires wings and takes a life of its own

My only contribution is the initial idea whose seeds I have sown

*

Dramatist

I conjure up two characters and try to write

A dialogue between them, at first it appears trite

But soon the characters become well-defined

And just like that, a story between them they find

When I try to write further, my characters dictate

How they behave, they almost determine their own fate

*

Actor

I rehearse my lines, I try to get under the skin

Of my character, gradually the character draws me in

When I emote on the stage, the character I portray

Determines how I come across in the play

I become the character I am playing, he is me

In my best performance we are intertwined inextricably

*

The creative process we consciously initiate

But our creations help us sustain and propagate

Our craft- we become observers of our own imagination

And develop an endless supply of inspiration..

One day I was having a conversation with my son

And I mentioned to him how things were done

When I was younger, lived in a different country

I had to explain to him complex politics and history

He was intrigued more than I expected him to be

He was eager to know more of my history

As I tried to go back further in time I realized

I did not know my family history, I was surprised

That I had never asked my elders about their memories

Now it was too late to hear some of their stories..

*

Once this realization hit, I decided I would find

More from my mother, ask her to rewind

Her life’s experiences, get to know

How life was for her five and six decades ago..

I resolved to document her stories in some way

For my future generations to discover them some day

*

One thing in our lives we should explore

Is our family histories, we should be more

Curious about our origins, we should ask in a manner proactive

Our parents and grandparents their narratives

And preserve them in some form for future generations to know

Because where we are from affects where we may go..

So many books start with a great deal of promise

Of having a unique story, an interesting premise

The first few chapters seem to plant the seed

Of a good story, intrigued, you continue to read

Midway through the book the plot thickens and there are

Multiple threads that extend in different directions quite far

From the overarching theme- you hope those tangled threads

Would be unraveled by the time you have read

The entire book- so you keep reading until the end is reached

But you feel let down, as if your trust in the book has been breached

Because the story leaves loose ends hanging everywhere

The tidy conclusion you had hoped for is simply not there!

*

Some people read from a literary point of view

And like to analyze and derive their own conclusions too

I, on the other hand, want the story to be complete

I want the author to tie all loose ends in a manner neat

I like a story that has an ending well-defined

I do not want to over-exercise my mind

There is uncertainty in life but I read

To escape from the vagaries of life indeed

Therefore I want to read stories which do not make me guess

As a reader I do not want to deal with that stress..

When a fictional story is created

In film or in writing, it is clearly stated

That any resemblance to people or events real

Must be considered purely coincidental

But the backdrop or setting should generally be

Believable for the place and time period of the story

Therefore storytellers research for periods of time extended

To set their stories correctly, not make factual errors unintended..

*

Sometimes the narrators deliberately deviate

From facts, what they portray is inaccurate

In the spirit of artistic license, facts can be

Distorted or bent to better suit the story

Sometimes it is done in such a subtle way

That only someone familiar with the subject can discover it anyway

At other times the anomaly is glaring enough

And discovering it is not for anyone tough

*

The practice of resorting to artistic license

Often comes under criticism intense

Some even find it irresponsible indeed

To deviate from facts, in can mislead

The audience into accepting artistic depictions to be true

For a work of historical fiction, this can have serious consequences too..

*

My take on this is that fiction involves

Imagining something new, a story unfolds and evolves

In the creator’s mind at its own pace

To expand freely, a story needs space

That should not be constrained by facts hard and cold

Therefore the spirit of artistic license I uphold..

When a maelstrom of emotions is going through your mind

You don’t really know how you feel, it is hard to find

The predominant emotion, at least one that you can name

You know your emotional state is heightened, all the same

If only you could distill down your emotion to its essence

You could create something powerful and intense..

*

After reading a book, myself in this situation often I find

The characters and the story leave imprints on my mind

That I cannot shake off, fiction and my reality collide

To create a weird emotional turmoil inside

Which as neither pleasant nor unpleasant I can describe

(Those who understand what I mean would constitute my tribe)

*

After a few hours I am back to my baseline emotional state

Still in a fictional state of mind, I am able to create

A piece of poetry in order to express authentically

The emotional tapestry the book had given me..

I have plenty of opinions and suggestions to share

But unless specifically asked for, I do not dare

To put forward my opinions and thoughts

Usually it is because confident I am not

That my suggestions would be taken seriously

On the other hand I wonder if I would inadvertently

Annoy someone if my opinion I were to state

Therefore I hold my tongue and wait

For others to share their often strong views

Only then do I speak, to go first I never choose

*

Often I find myself at the receiving end

Of advice that people without my asking for extend

Perhaps because my opinions I do not share

People think I do not understand or that I am unaware

When such situations occur I wonder if I should be

More forthcoming with my opinions about issues that I see

*

I envy those who audaciously believe

That their suggestions would be well-received

Their thoughts with confidence they express

No doubt people who hear them are impressed

Maybe I should just give it a try

Express my opinions without being shy

Maybe the hesitation lies purely in my mind

Let me share my thoughts and see what I find