Friday, July 27, 2012

today, you are not here..



today,
you are not here.
so i will
kill time
with the cloves
... in the kitchen
drive out
the chameleons
in the garden.
flirt with the
neighbor
who has been
eyeing me coyly.

i will
send a perfumed letter
to the boy who sent me
that letter with his blood
last week.
ask him over maybe.

today, you are not here
only so i may realise
that when you are not here
it doesnt matter
whether
it is the chameleons in the garden
or the boy with the blood soaked letter.
if its not you,
its all the same.

15 comments:

~nm said...

This was beautiful.

kj said...

oh jeez my friend hdwk, this is a wonderful wonderful love poem. you didn't waste a word and your images are perfect.

p.s. i don't like calling you hawk. help me!

love
kj

Maddening Silences said...

Wow.. so nice and simple.. beautifully written.. while all the unsaid feelings hit you subtly... loved it..

Manish Raj said...

Lovely indeed...almost felt like writing a response..

Sher Khan (and Adi) have gone to Delhi.. and I am in KL..

How do we know said...

hi nm: thank you!!

hi kj: thank you!! u can call me howdy, everyone else does that.. :-)

hi yam: yep :-) thank you!

guruji: hmmm... aapka to man nahi lagta hoga.. write that response na..

Onkar said...

Lovely lines

Himanshu Tandon said...

For once I shall not add anything from my end on these...

To be cherished as is...Good one.

A said...

Very beautifully expressed.

Gentle Breeze said...

The ghazal by Chitra Singh from the movie Arth comes close to echoing your thoughts

Tu nahin toh zindagi mei aur kya reh jayega
Tu nahin toh door tak tanhaiyon ka toh silsila reh jayega
Dard ki saari tahein aur saare guzare haadse
Sab dhuaan ho jaayenge, ek waquiyaa reh jaayega

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kSQaPLTGLFw

How do we know said...

gentle breeze: this is one of my all time favorite ghazals.. and my fave sher from the ghazal , which i hum often: yun bhi hoga vo mujhe dil se bhule dega magar.. ye bhi hoga khud usi mein ik khala reh jayega...

Gentle Breeze said...

something on the same lines sung by rahat fateh ali.. very poignant...

Main jahaan rahoon main kahin bhi hoon, teri yaad saaath hai

kisi se kahoon
ke nahi kahoon
yeh jo dil ki baat hai
kehne ko saath apane ek duniya chalti hai
per chhupke is dil mein tanhaayi palti hai
bas yaad saath hai
teri yaad saaath hai

Gentle Breeze said...

Something on the same lines sung by Rahat Fateh Ali..very poignant

main jahaan rahoon, main kahin bhi hoon...teri yaad saaath hai

kisi se kahoon...ke nahi kahoon
yeh jo dil ki baat hai
kehne ko saath apane ek duniya chalti hai
per chhupke is dil mein tanhaayi palti hai
bas yaad saath hai
teri yaad saaath hai

How do we know said...

hi GB: the idea is not new.. my personal inspiration comes from this premchand novel where the wife goes blind thru the husband's negligence but continues to serve him with real love.. until the husband's relatives brainwash him into believing that he deserves better. and he agrees to marry (hold ur breath) a 14 year old.i have often wondered about the generosity in a heart that, instead of blaming the hands that blinded her, continue to love and serve them..

Frog-in-the-Well said...

Priceless

How do we know said...

Hi A: thank you! sorry i missed responding to your comment earlier.

Hi FITW: thank you!