Dark ominous clouds
Are all I see
As I longingly stare
Out of my office window
Stuck in a 9-to-5
With no escape
The inevitable rain
Cajoling me
The surreptitious scent
Of sand rising from
Its union with purity
Filling me
Transcending my being
The dry autumn leaves
Drifting with the flow
To destinations unknown
Mocking me
‘Let us escape,
To a simpler past,
When choices came easy,
Happiness was aplenty,
And dreams came true’,
Is all I hear
In the pitter-patter of
Bold rain-drops
Forcing me
To think of
An exit strategy
To abashedly bathe
In the slanting downpour
Wash away the grime
From my tainted soul
Make me happy
One last time
‘No’, I say,
‘I will wait for thee.
Delayed gratification
Is what I believe in’,
My spirit takes flight
But alas!
All my zeal
Goes up in smoke
As I step out of
My chosen prison
Only to see
The last few drops
Falling from the heavens
Crying for my loss
Like the tears
Streaming from eyes
About to let go
Even the rainbow
Seems like a sad face
Mourning for me
I look up at the sky
A plea on my lips
But all goes quiet
The silence
Deafening
– Yousuf Bawany, March 2016
I look out my bedroom window
And see the falling rain
Pouring down from the heavens above
It takes me down memory lane
This view stirs up memories
Of a not-too-distant past
When I used to live my life
With the fullest of my heart
With no plans for the future
No vision, no objectives set
I just danced all my worries away
Didn’t matter if I got wet
On my way back from school
With a bunch of friends in tow
We jumped into potholes and puddles
Feels like an eternity ago
Always in pursuit of something
Chasing frogs and butterflies
With arms wide open as wings
Always reaching for the skies
There was only one fear, if any
Of going home all covered in dirt
That Mom would flip if she saw
My newly bought clean-white shirt
Not caring what others may think
We were young, we were free
Slaves of society is what we are now
Denying it won’t make us see
Now we just sit at the window
Rather than joining all the fun
Not remembering that someday we too
Will set with the setting sun
This heavenly shower from the skies
Will wash away all our tears
It’ll cleanse our souls off all the grime
It’ll wipe out all our fears
Insanity at its best! 