Invictus

Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the Pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.

In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.

Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds, and shall find, me unafraid.

It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll.
I am the master of my fate:
I am the captain of my soul. 

  -- William Ernest Henley

Over coffee

A violet velvet couch,
a deep coco aroma
and a cup of coffee.

And we meet, the first time.

Glances are exchanged,
remarks of cordiality follow
like bodyguards behind.
Questions are asked,
comments made,
Experiences shared,

Past and Future,
Likes and Dislikes,
Tastes and Talents,
Work and Play,

"A lot can happen
over a cup of coffee"
But, nothing does.
Did they mean 'cups' ?

What follows is just
deathly silence.
The silence tries to
wash away the tit-bits
of memories, but fails.

Death Be Not Proud

Death, be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so;
For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow
Die not, poor death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,
Much pleasure; then from thee much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee do go,
Rest of their bones, and soul's delivery.
Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell,
And poppy or charms can make us sleep as well
And better than thy stroke; why swell'st thou then?
One short sleep past, we wake eternally,
And death shall be no more, death, thou shalt die.

 --- John Donne

लगता नहीं है दिल मेरा

लगता नहीं है दिल मेरा उजड़े दयार में 
किस की बनी है आलम-ए-ना पायेदार में

कह दो इन हसरतो से कहीं और जा बसें
इतनी जगह कहाँ है दिल-ए-दागदार में

उम्र-ए-दराज़ मांग कर लाये थे चार दिन
दो आरज़ू  में कट गए दो इंतज़ार में 

कितना है बदनसीब 'ज़फर' दफ्न के लिए
दो गज ज़मीं भी न मिली कु-ए-यार में

--- बहादुर शाह 'ज़फर'

Phenomenal Woman

Pretty women wonder where my secret lies.
I'm not cute or built to suit a fashion model's size
But when I start to tell them,
They think I'm telling lies.
I say,
It's in the reach of my arms
The span of my hips,
The stride of my step,
The curl of my lips.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

I walk into a room
Just as cool as you please,
And to a man,
The fellows stand or
Fall down on their knees.
Then they swarm around me,
A hive of honey bees.
I say,
It's the fire in my eyes,
And the flash of my teeth,
The swing in my waist,
And the joy in my feet.
I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Men themselves have wondered
What they see in me.
They try so much
But they can't touch
My inner mystery.
When I try to show them
They say they still can't see.
I say,
It's in the arch of my back,
The sun of my smile,
The ride of my breasts,
The grace of my style.
I'm a woman

Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me.

Now you understand
Just why my head's not bowed.
I don't shout or jump about
Or have to talk real loud.
When you see me passing
It ought to make you proud.
I say,
It's in the click of my heels,
The bend of my hair,
the palm of my hand,
The need of my care,
'Cause I'm a woman
Phenomenally.
Phenomenal woman,
That's me. 

  -- Maya Angelou

Life Exam

In this difficult multiple-choice exam,
which is tailored for you alone,
You get ample choices in questions,
(But often you get just two.)
No answer can fetch full marks, and
You can try but not guess, what comes next.
At times, you can only make a blind guess,
as you can't skip one question.

All means, fair or unfair, are allowed,
however, at your own risk.
Feedback, if desired, is available,
you may get a chance for
correction, but, at a price.
You are your own examiner, for
the questions already answered.

You like it or not, but this exam
may abruptly end anytime,
without a further question,
without giving any choice.

Knowing this beforehand
might help you do well
in this exam
called Life.

Nothing twice

Nothing can ever happen twice.
In consequence, the sorry fact is
that we arrive here improvised
and leave without the chance to practice. 

Even if there is no one dumber,
if you're the planet's biggest dunce,
you can't repeat the class in summer:
this course is only offered once. 

No day copies yesterday,
no two nights will teach what bliss is
in precisely the same way,
with precisely the same kisses. 

One day, perhaps some idle tongue
mentions your name by accident:
I feel as if a rose were flung
into the room, all hue and scent. 

The next day, though you're here with me,
I can't help looking at the clock:
A rose? A rose? What could that be?
Is it a flower or a rock? 

Why do we treat the fleeting day
with so much needless fear and sorrow?
It's in its nature not to stay:
Today is always gone tomorrow. 

With smiles and kisses, we prefer
to seek accord beneath our star,
although we're different (we concur)
just as two drops of water are.

 -- Wislawa Szymborska