Thirty Five

Thirty five is a tetrahedral number. Thirty five is the highest number one can count on his fingers using base 6. Thirty five is the atomic number of bromine which is widely used in water purification. Thirty five is the minimum age of candidates for election to the United States Presidency. 

Given that average life expectancy in the world is 70 years (according to World Factbook), thirty five years is your mid life!

Thirty five years is a good time for self evaluation. Being in thirties is beautiful. You are more mature and have more understanding of life. Society-imposed goals are no longer a torture as you have passed that age: exam marks, admissions, job, career, marriage, children - whether you have ticked all these society-imposed goals or missed any, you reach a state where you no longer care. Its the time when you begin to live life for yourself.

In mid thirties, many people are often struck by what they call as "thrisis". Its like a mini mid life crisis. This is direct outcome of your self evaluation. Its a time when you gradually and drastically shift your focus in life. You would see many people take extreme decisions in their thirties that mark drastic changes in their careers, relationships and spiritual/religious beliefs.

As I turn thirty five, I too put on a review coat and evaluated myself. Tried expressing my review results in the form of a poem! :)

With colourful threads of love

I began weaving the fabric of my life

I wanted to weave a beautiful design

Which would withstand any knife...

I roped the threads around all I loved

There were so many, I couldn't settle for any less!

I thought I was living a big life

But it soon became an entangled mess!

I couldn't sort the entangled mess

I couldn't cut the thread

I couldn't see any beautiful design 

And the colours all looked dead

I stepped aside to check my work

And what I saw broke my heart! 

I was half way through

And there was no way I could restart!

While I was busy weaving my life's fabric

I didn't realise how it had changed it's course

Was this how I had imagined it would be?

As all I can feel is remorse...

Is my life really an entangled mess?

Or do I fail to see its beauty? 

Is there a way to take it forward

Without feeling regret, hurt or guilty?

Should I brood or start afresh?

Should I shrug and simply jive?

Is this something that everyone feels

When they turn thirty five?!!

What If I...

This was my first attempt to write a poem when I was given "half a title" for the poem! Yes, I was to write something for the section "What if I..." of our magazine and I chose to write a poem on "What if I could travel back in time?"

What If I Could Travel Back In Time?

Many a times when I look back
And stare at the “one-way” sign
I wonder what would be,
If I could travel back in time!

I would not have watched that TV serial
And instead studied a bit harder
I would not have made that “silly mistake”
And would have scored a grade higher!

I would have uttered that “sorry” word
When we had debated onto days for nigh…
I would have hugged my best friend once more,
Before I bid her a good-bye…

I would have sat beside my grandmother
As she counted her last few moments
I would keep rewinding time till that instant
Beyond which I would never let it progress.

I would have traveled back to the time,
To see the world when I was not even born,
I would then understand what our grandparents meant,
When they said “Those days have gone!”

Gradually the years would pass and
In the mirror, an old woman I’d see.
The nearing “end” wouldn’t scare me anymore,
‘Coz a child again I can be!

There are so many things that I would have done
If I could travel back in time!
But hey! Then I’d just live in the past…
And then wouldn’t my future turn grime?!

Copyright ©

Still...

I feel I have lost my heart,
And still I can hear it beat...
There is silence all around,
And still I can hear a song sweet...

You aren't beside me,
And still you, I everywhere see...
You aren't talking just now,
But your voice is reaching me...

You aren't looking at me,
But I can still feel your glance...
I think about you quietly,
But I feel my heart dance...

You aren't sitting behind me,
But still I turn around to see you...
You aren't calling me,
But I go out to look for you...

I keep your thoughts aside for sometime,
And decide to work for a while...
But you come back in my thoughts,
And you quietly make me smile...

The Void

I wrote this poem exactly 1 year back!

Floating in the vacuum...
Searching in the void...
Living in the present,
With emotions devoid.

I dont remember the past
I've forgotten its demise.
I dont worry about the future
I'm not waiting for any surprise.

Taking one moment at a time,
I'm living in the present.
I'm searching for something unknown,
In the hollow of each moment.

I'm just sailing with the time
Counting hours, couting days.
I am unable to comprehend
Destiny's bateful ways.

Rules Don't Work On Me

Dont you think everyone around you observes you, scrutinizes you? Dont you ever get get irritated by the inferences people draw from your actions? Well one day I did get irritated...!!

If my mood changed from sad to bright today
By listening to a romantic tune,
Don’t conclude that I love music.
This music can bring back nostalgia.

If I plucked a rose on my way daily,
Don’t say I am fond of roses.
Sometimes they prick me.

If I dropped a few pennies on the hands of a needy
When I saw his hungry face and tired eyes,
Don’t think I have a soft heart.
I can be very mean at times.

If I prayed to God daily
And thanked him for all that he has given me...
Don’t believe that I am His worshipper.
I also blame him for all my failures.

If your first assumption about me was correct
And so was the second.
Don’t assume you would always be right about me.
Rules don’t work on me.

Imagination

I have written this poem long time back. It is one of my favorite poems. The poem describes how a "poem" was written during one of the lull periods in the day... But the effect of the poem, the satisfaction of expressing thoughts into lovely words, lasted only for a while. The last line of this poem suggests the need to keep your imagination, your creativity alive forever!


My heart was barren
It felt the sun's hot glare
It longed for colorful life
So i threw words into air.

The words rose like a song loud
With great pomp and band.
They fell as a soft whisper
Like the snowflakes on sand.

The white snow on the brown sand
Made the bells of joy ring
I was transported to another world
And a dreamy song i did sing.

But in no time, the snow melted
And it vanished with evaporation...
But it left behind dry patches
To be filled in by new imagination...

© Mukta Arankalle-Aphale

When Things Go Wrong

A nice, motivational poem, that I came across on a website.

When things go wrong as they sometimes will,
When the road you are trudging seems all uphill,
When the funds are low and the debts are high,
And you want to smile, but you have to sigh.

When care is pressing you down a bit,
Rest, if you must, but do not quit.
Life is queer with its twists and turns,
As everyone of us sometimes learns,
And many a failure turns about,
When he might have won had he stuck it out.

Don't give up though the pace seems slow -
You may succeed with another blow.
Success is failure turned inside out,
The silver tint of the clouds of doubt.

And you never can tell how close you are,
It may be near when it seems so far.
So stick to the fight when you're hardest hit -
It's when things seem worst that you must not quit.

If you give me...

I have written this poem to inaugrate my blog!
It conveys simple feelings... But what makes this poem special is simply, feelings!

If you give me your love
I will cherish it.

If you give me a wound
I will forget it.

If you give me your word
I will keep it.

If you give me a smile
I will return it.

If you give me a brush
I will paint a rainbow.

If you give me a pen
I will write a poem.

If you give me your heart
I will tend it.

If you give me your dream
I will live it.