Passion…unbridled

Telling your story could be a cathartic experience for you,

But you are worried about dragging others in it too

Some people in your story would not be portrayed in the best light

Tarnishing their reputations through your story-telling does not seem right

But if you were to leave them out completely

Your story would not be as authentic as you want it to be..

*

Perhaps your narrative you would fictionalize

You know those close to you would still recognize

The characters in your story, but the rest of the world would not

Writing your story as a piece of fiction is an attractive thought…

*

As you prepare your account, you realize

There are people to whom you need to apologize

While some people had hurt you, to others you had been unkind

You can make amends through your narrative, keep that in mind

*

Your life has not been lived in a vacuum, nor can your story unfold

Without the presence of others, if your story needs to be told

It would include those who have helped you be who you are

Without taking them along on your storytelling, you would not go far…

I could use my money to buy luxuries, sure

But even with possession of material comforts I cannot ensure

That I would be able to find

That elusive peace of mind

That I would be able to have backup plans

For emergencies, when circumstances get out of hand

At that time material objects would not give me

The much needed feeling of security..

*

Therefore my hard-earned money I spend

On intangible things that my peace of mind can extend

Thus insurance policies I buy, and pay

Their hefty premiums so that on a rainy day

I have a cover to protect my entire family

I know peace of mind does not come for free..

*

To free up more time in my day, I try

If possible, the luxury of time I buy

For services I am willing to pay

A higher price any given day..

*

Life is too precious to be spent in worry

Or in trying to finish chores in a hurry

Money is the means to achieve an end

To be able to live life the way I intend..

My patient looks sheepish when asked about

His exercise, or lack thereof, this is a question he’d like to skip without doubt

He tells me he has been inactive and that he already knew

He would be shamed for it, because that’s what all his health care professionals do…

*

Sure enough, I would have proceeded

To lecture him on exercise, admonish him for not having heeded

My advice regarding regular exercise, but the word shame

Stops me in my tracks, my intent was to assign blame

To lack of physical activity in worsening his ailment

To make him feel ashamed was never my intent..

*

That made me think, how often do we

Make our patients feel they are being shamed, unknowingly

If patients feel humiliated, they are likely to hide

Their health issues such that we would be unable to provide

The best possible care to improve their health conditions

And our sincere efforts would not achieve fruition..

*

My words can make a difference and I should be aware

Of how they make my patients feel, I must choose them with care

Ultimately I want to set my patients up for success

Encourage them to do more but not make them feel less..

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..