10th online session notes:
Winter Poem
once a snowflake fell
on my brow and i loved
it so much and i kissed
it and it was happy and called its cousins
and brothers and a web
of snow engulfed me then
i reached to love them all
and i sqeezed them and they became
a spring rain and i stood perfectly
still and was a flower
-Submitted by Kumkum Bhasin Sood.
—Written by Nikki Giovanni (letter of appreciation attached as photo)
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Faith
Here is the humble caterpillar.
Look at him rippling toward that twig.
Watch how he attaches himself to it,
binding himself to what he knows he needs.
What is it about this attachment
that allows him to give over
his known and sturdy body,
his known and sturdy world?
See how he dissolves
from all he knows
into all that he doesn’t know;
from all that he now is
into all that he is becoming;
how his body accomplishes
what our minds can scarcely imagine.
Here is the humble caterpillar:
He has lived his whole life
on milkweed plants
one foot above the ground.
Now, he lives his whole life floating
from breeze to breeze
from flower to flower
from nectar to nectar
finally flying from Vermont
where I live
to Mexico
where I have never been.
Anything is possible in this world.
-Submitted by Vivek Ahluwalia.
-written by Julie Cadwallader Staub
——————
Spring passes and one remembers one’s
Innocence
Summer passes and one remembers one’s
Exuberance
Autumn passes and one remembers one’s
Reverence
Winter passes and one remembers one’s
Perseverance
-Submitted by Sanjiv Kapur
-Written by Yoko Ono
——————
The rising
The corn seeds I sowed the other day
Haven’t morphed and seen light yet
The rain followed by the sun
Could have made the crust hard
May be the soil is cold still
Or the air too dry
Someday soon
When fresh rains soften the crust
Or when the sun warms up the soil
The seeds will rise and
With them I too will rise
-Written & Submitted by Rahul Prakash
Discussion-
The lively discussion on the poem after the poem was recited was initiated by the Chair. The underlying meaning of the poem that we must have patience and wait for the right conditions for us to bloom was discussed. Just as there are several requirements such as temperature, moisture, winds and so forth for seeds to germinate, there are many conditions that need to be met for us to succeed in what we undertake to do. The poem also has an underlying theme of optimism and hope, as also the connect between the success of the seeds and that of the farmer.
———————-
Sensory Deceptions
Do my senses deceive me
Or is that petrichor I smell?
It’s been such a long time
It’s become so hard to tell
Reality from wishful thinking
Real events from dreams
In limbo life seems
Awaiting a wet spell
Do my senses deceive me
Or is that an oasis I see?
It’s been such a long trudge
The horizon never seemed to budge
Until this lush image appeared
Soothing my eyes that the sun had seared
I am near it, throat parched
I hope it’s not a deceptive mirage
Do my senses deceive me
Or is that some good news I hear?
It’s been such a dismal year
Our spirits want lifting more than ever
Cutting through the lies and deceptions
Positively affecting human perceptions
Rising above the mire of greed
A little clean hope is what we need
Do my senses deceive me
Or is that a cool wind I feel?
Blowing away the smokescreens
That arise from borderland war fields
The world seems to be in turmoil
Dirty politics bringing blood to a boil
It’s high time for a clean sweep
Flush out earth’s toxins wide and deep
While my senses seek reality
My mind rejects conformity
Combined, they wield awesome power
And give me strength to climb every tower.
-Written & Submitted by Aradhye Ackshatt
————————
Submitted by Raj Narayan
My Gordian knot
Love curdled to a stifling bond
A drifting, uncontrolled mind
I cut that Gordian knot
And set myself free.
Not of a world my kingdom
Simply my own freedom
I untied the Gordian knot
Took my happiness in both hands.
I told her straight, no ifs or buts
It hurt both but it had to be done
I tore asunder the Gordian knot,
Ducked the loose ends’ flailing.
The hurtful words I could not utter
Courage to do the deed I could muster.
I loosened the Gordian knot
Ended all argument forever.
I hurl defiance at all judgment
My mind, serene, sole arbiter
I burned the Gordian knot
Set myself happy and free.
-Written & Submitted by Raj Narayan
-Description: The audience immediately grasped the central theme of the poem as the sudden and forceful termination of a long term relationship. The Gordian knot metaphor of a complicated knot being unraveled by Alexander was recalled. Alexander went on to win the kingdom of the world; the poet won freedom.
The refrain of the different ways in which the Gordian knot was undone was appreciated. It was inspired by the Wikipedia article on the subject which lists different sources describing the way Alexander undid the knot. It is unlikely that he hacked away at it with his sword, that would not be an imposing spectacle!
————
Autopsychography
The poet is a faker
Who's so good at his act
He even fakes the pain
Of pain he feels in fact.
And those who read his words
Will feel in his writing
Neither of the pains he has
But just the one they're missing.
And so around its track
This thing called the heart winds,
A little clockwork train
To entertain our minds.
-Presented by Harbans Nagpal
-Written by Fernando Pessoa
(translated by Richard Zenith)
