Living Up A Dream Again

when your untamed hair,
flowing over your shoulders,
reveals an unhurried you,
and the strands of black and golden
pat and glide across your face,
and an odd one sticks to your lips,
stroked by the gentle wafts,
and flattered by the compliments
of the playful autumn breeze,
on a lazy sunday evening,
under the october sky,
they may not mean anything to you,
but they move the mountains,
and when my heart skips a beat,
they mean living up a dream again


when you step out of the cabin,
and bend over the railings,
atop the trawler's deck,
the tides hammer against the sides,
and a shower of a million drops of brine
pecks a kiss on you,
when the unhindered gusts of wind
wrap your dupatta to hug you,
against the horizons sinking into the oceans,
they may not mean anything to you,
but when time freezes, and so does my heart,
when blood races up my neck,
they mean living up a dream again


when you walk barefoot on the beach,
and leave your footprints,
sharp, as if pedicured,
on the sands of time,
until the waves wash and erase them,
when the soothing, yet obstinate breeze
plays hide-and-seek,
and you grab the loose ends of your dupatta,
when the dipping sun
turns you into a silhouette,
and my heart aches deep,
longing to be where it belongs,
they may not mean a whole lot to you,
but as the frames are etched in my eyes,
and the flames rekindled in your heart,
and i'm lost between memories and hopes,
my sweet,
they mean living up a dream again,
with you!




© sashikant mohanty 

I Wait, Every Night

i wait
for you every night
to peck a kiss on my eyes
to sip the brine
that stood too long waiting for you,

i wait
for you in the dark of my room,
for your arms to envelope me,
for the warmth of your skin,
for the shiver, as your fingers lock mine,
for my dry lips to find moisture
in yours,
for my tongue to find life
in yours,
for your head to lie on my shoulders,
and mine to rest on your bosoms,
for the scent of your untamed hair,
and the smell of you,

i wait,
and I dream,
long and with eyes wide shut
your eyes unmoved,
as a warm line of tears
trickled from the corner of your eyes,
as if to say sorry,
and go on to ask,
why didn't you come sooner?,
your red eyes,
locked with my sleepy ones,
meeting one last time,
before the last few minutes,
i wish death could wait,
and why should it not,
when life waited for years

i wait,
day after day, 
as i light another diya,
whisper the same prayers,
one more time,
hoping my god will wake up
hoping it'd be soon,
i wait,
dusk after dusk,
for a new dawn
when your feet would lead to my nest,

i wait,
lying in my bed
amidst,
the dark, the tears and my pillow,
for you to come,
so we could share them,
the dark, our tears and our pillow,
between you and i,
they too are tired -
waiting for you,
been up many nights in a row,
or, was it not one endless night?
my heart aches,
the same like then,
and an old hindi song fills the room,
with a longing,
the same - like then,
caught between my heartache and my dreams,
i can see you walking up,
in your bobby-print brown-and-beige churidaar,
but it seems like a long red carpet,
and you take forever,
it's been a long wait
come soon,
before my heart 
falls asleep - forever!




© sashikant mohanty

One Day

one day,
you will miss, and cry

one day,
you'll run a thousand miles,
scan every corner, and try

one day,
you will stand in wait, endlessly,
and pray, 

and keep at it, until the eyes turn dry

one day,
you'd also want to say "sorry",
for the deep deep cut,
for the way it bled,
and turned into rubble, dead and dry

one day,
you will wait for the phone to ring,
you'll yell "pick up!"
"where the hell are you!"
and keep praying,
and waiting, 
with tears alone to keep you warm,
under the chill of night-sky

one day,
you'll sit with two cups of hot tea,
but they will turn cold,
and so your tears will, too,

you'd recall the day,
when the return of the smiles
made you cry
and the little girl in you blushed shy

one day,

you'll crave again, 
pray for the old days to be back,
for a warm hug, tight and long,
when the sun sinks, and night is nigh

but that day,
it would be a little too late,
for the thoughts to reach,
for your voice to be heard,
for the hands to touch,
and you to feel the warmth,
for even the gods to listen,
"one last time," 
even if you yell and cry!




© sashikant mohanty

Shades of Love

my upwelling,
and my welling up,
my anxieties,
and my absurdities,
my restlessness,
and my helplessness,
my prayers,
and my tears,
my whispers,
and my murmurs,
my sunsets,
and my sunrises,
my ebbings,
and my flowings,
my gentle breezes,
and my storms,
my drizzles,
and my downpours,
my hugs,
and my partings,
my waits,
and my frustrations,
my patience,
and my impatience,
my perseverance,
and my persistence,
my beliefs,
and my hanging in,
my sighs,
and my silences,
my fears,
and my hopes,
my memories,
and my dreams,
my heartbreaks,
and my heartbeats

they're all but
strokes of the same brush,
myriad shades of love

the day they are no more,
know that i am no more!





© sashikant mohanty

Strange, The Ways of Destiny

it's strange

the ways of destiny

when they sought each other madly,

it led them on different paths,

when the longing was tearing,

to be in each other's arms,

their worlds were thrown apart,

a thousand miles,

and the space of a lifetime

it's strange

the ways of destiny,

when their unexpressed emotions

had almost died,

and their unborn tears almost dried,

when their indelible memories almost faded,

and were edged out slowly by hope,

it led them back,

and crossed their paths,

and brought to life,

a sky full of dreams,

and the missed diwali of their lives,

it turned their seas choppy,

and tossed them ashore,

and set their waves back into rhythm,   

to run and roll into each other again

it's strange

the ways of destiny,

she wishes to see a smile on him,

but she's stuck,

where she is and can't crave him

wholeheartedly,

and

he wants to see a smile spread on her face,

but stuck where he is, with unspent love,

seeking in the snow-capped mountains of dreams,

and surfing in the oceans of hope,

he can't uncrave her -

wholeheartedly!

© sashikant mohanty