Holding my second cup of coffee
I gaze outside…
The skies seem quite calm
The road calmer due to the public holiday ( Election day),
Just then a WhatsApp message pops up,
News of death,
Of someone known to me,
Someone who has motivated and empowered me,
A kind soul …
How ephemeral is life!
And how life comes to an end…
Darkness, zilch!
The constant whir from the ceiling fan sets my thought process in motion,
What is my expiry date?
Is it stamped somewhere on me?!
What will I leave behind?
And my thoughts immediately race to today’s prompt –SOC,
Another poem for another day,
What would happen to all my poems?
After I’m gone will they get erased?
It probably might but still why do I choose to write…
– I jolt to the sound of calling bell,
It’s the flower vendor,
Flowers–fragrant flowers, fresh jasmine strings,
But they too have an expiry date, don’t they?
Clouded with thoughts I switch on the griddle,
As I spread the dosa batter my mind swirls,
Thoughts here, thoughts there, thoughts everywhere,
The living, the dead, the memories,
Where do all this exist?
My body, a vessel, my mind a machine,
Whispers, voices, yap yap yapping,
All the time,
Beyond control,
Who am I? A body, a soul , an unknown being perhaps?
Despite questions ringing within my head
I function mechanically,
Because I should,
I must,
And I have a house to run, people who love me,
And the fan continues to whir,
As I drown myself in other errands,
A friend calls me to catch up,
We have a rather interesting conversation,
Anxious thoughts are soon swapped with something totally different and pleasant,
Thoughts, feelings, highs, lows– they come in waves, disappear and reappear,
And mind follows unrestrained by the spatial constraints,
Life moves on and it will regardless of what happens,
That’s the beauty of life,
—And I complete my poem for the day.

***