Halts Poems

Suitcase Solution

Whistle echoes in the tunnel
then smoke belches upwards
as the train halts at the platform
Disgorging its passengers
before porters offload baggage
Cases, trunks, sacks – all claimed
But no
There on the platform two suitcases
Side by side, travelling twins of no fixed abode
Ace of Spades on one, King of Hearts on the other
Unnoticed
Porters distracted as the cavalcade announces its arrival
Guard of honour, red carpet, bowed heads - 
trappings of power and privilege
Gliding through the booking hall
onto the platform
Glancing left not right
Two suitcase stand forlorn
Something stirs within
in an instant, carnage
No train
No platform
No power
No privilege
The end of monarchy
The start of republic
Suitcase slaughter
Suitcase solution

THE SILENT KISS

A baby is born—
wrapped in soft white,
breathing gently,
half-asleep,
a trace of a cry still lingering in the air.

The sister carries this tiny bundle
from the stillness of the ward
to the waiting arms of the mother.

The father stands close,
eyes fixed,
heart rushing ahead of time,
as if he too is being born again.

The mother,
her body weary from the long storm of pain,
rests, breathes,
waits—
and then at last,
the weight of the child settles in her arms.

She studies the face,
the skin, the fragile fingers,
searching for traces of God
in every curve and color.

In that moment,
time halts.

Tears fall freely—
of gratitude, of surrender,
of love that has no language.

No sound, no word is needed.
The world begins anew
with a silent kiss.

The Toll of a Single Bell Chime

A bell tolls — with a single chime.
Igniting the spell of dawn’s regret.
It halts the breath, suspends all time,
Foreboding with threats you can't forget.

You flinch—one foot on the stepping stone,
The wind's first touch scalds your face.
Just one finger grips your hand alone.
You wait for relief from bell’s disgrace.

The silence palls where echoes die—
The ring bell toll fades with no reply.
There's no sign, no sound, no reason why,
You're left here dangling from the sky.

A bird attempts one fragile note. 
Bashful in the spelled applause. 
The breeze catches breath in its throat. 
Afraid to continue through the pause.

You toll the haunt of some unspoken spell,
A pact with ghosts to stop the feeling.
While winds and seas rise on the swell,
Sending your hopeful plans reeling.

A lone bell tolls—no one answers now.
So old scars and doubts take the blame.
For dismembered memories you can’t avow.
In the flinching cringe that has no name.

Along with the thunder

As the smiles in the cloud brighten,
    a cloudburst of joy
  sends gentle kisses on our rooftops,
pouring down clouded tears—
    bottled-up emotions
to quench the thirsts of
    humans, plants, animals... and phantoms.

The trees—
 with feet rooted deep in earth—
  stood humble as a worm.

The birds~
 wings shyly folded to drain the rain—
  could not dry-clean the leak in their nests.

Each drop of the rain 
  carried the smell of the earth,
 as runoffs calmed the fury of a beast
    threatening to devour the landscape—
      along with the thunder.

Then twilight knocks—
       the stream of tears halts mid-flow,
the music stops, as rain pulls up the curb;
    dry rain clutches the biting wind...
to remind us: it's winter not summer.

Make it not your mate

Make not hate your mate;	
Don't go with it on a date.
It’s indeed a very bad trait!

Allow it not to kill your discretion;
It badly injures your impression.
Doubt not, it halts your progression!

Sow not this deadly seed in your mind;         
In each and every one, faults it does find.
And imports headaches of every kind!

It’s against all good instruction;
Its ill effects need no introduction.
Its result is nothing but destruction!

The wars of the past, we have as samples!
The ongoing wars are its live examples!!

Monochromatic Tears

monochromatic clouds
stagnated within space 
rush hour traffic abounds 
vitreous tears coat cheeks
time halts to screeching stops
as you took your last breath

hiku

the snow falls
melting halts
spring solstice is on hold ...

Afterglow

Dancing beneath the celestial tapestry,  
Each tender touch and warm embrace ignites her joy,  
A radiant warmth lingers like the twilight’s kiss,  
As love deepens, weaving threads of passion ever tighter.

It echoes the canvas of a setting sun,  
Where the horizon bleeds into a symphony of colors,  
Yet shadows loom, seeking to veil this glowing warmth,  
But it endures, shimmering in the gaze of distant stars.

Occasionally, the world acknowledges my toil,  
As a young dreamer, my father’s pride wraps around me like a cloak,  
In the realm of labor, accolades bloom like spring flowers,  
Filling me with a fleeting warmth, as time momentarily halts.

In this fleeting existence, permanence is a myth,  
The sky surrenders its glow to the encroaching night,  
Romance fades into the quiet of slumber,  
And the warmth of achievement dissipates at the boss’s inquiry, “How is your work progressing?”

A lone pattern in glow and gleam

Fear not the countless stars that light the sky,
For many naysayers still will deny.
Find them a place where they must stay away,
The clouds will part, your star will shine today.

Each star, a lone pattern in glow and gleam.
So nothing dims its light or halts its dream.
The clouds hold space to cradle your surprise,
For many reasons, your star has to rise.

Just know your star must shine despite the dark,
A mentor great in knowledge lights a spark,
Ignites a flame no force can quench or tame,
Its glow entrenched beyond all doubt or shame.

Let not the winds of fear obscure your way,
For dawn will break to bring a brighter day.
Hold firm to dreams, let courage be your guide,
With steadfast hope, your light will gleam and glide.

The Echo Returns Not

The bare granite hill, worn down each day, 
I climb halfway and call your name. 
A sound rings loud, echoing near, 
Yet only silence fills my ear. 
The hot wind halts, the sky stands bare, 
Yet stillness meets me, cold and rare. 

The valley knows the sound of stone chippers, 
Knows your laughter sweet and melodious, 
Now the stones, though worn and wise, 
Keep your voice in mute disguise. 

I wait, I listen—time stands thin, 
Yet no reply will call me in. 
Some echoes fade, some never start, 
And some are swallowed by the heart.

Costumes and Laughs

      A mask to conceal
         a costume to hide behind
      A dozen laughs kill the pain
         a couple drinks anesthetize 

      Any way it’s sliced or diced
          a band-aid halts the blood
       Though memory lurks in darkling queue
          to ope all wounds anew

A question to humanity

O men of earth! Tell me, do the misery and scars carved into your hearts serve as a vast barrier that halts your kindness and cordiality?

Solitary

Working solo I find my rhythm
White noise humming through my thoughts
Existence is tranquil 
No voices to drown out the clarity
No distractions from the focus I crave

I build from the ground up
Structures shaped by my hands alone
Each step, though slow, feels deeply mine
A solitary journey toward something greater

At times the silence becomes a weight
The walls I’ve built feel too thick to break
Ideas circle like restless birds never taking flight 
I am both the painter and the canvas
Progress halts where two voices could have spoken
Two minds could have met
Collaboration is the key I lack
The bridge I can’t build without another's hand

Still I press on
Knowing the loneliness of creation
And the beauty in forging my own way

They Walk Warmly Together

God looks at Death, and it nods,
It knows that it’s time for them to walk together,
They journey across the sunlit fields,  
And through the meadows of night.  

There’s an onus for God and a call for Death,  
Time moves ahead of them,  
And the bell chimes wherever it stops,  
Signalling a mission to fulfil.  

God halts the midnight train,  
While Death summons souls to embark,
They are taken to the beyond,  
Separated at the celestial station.  

God observes the soul’s chamber,  
And he shakes his head,
Death wishes to carry out its duty,  
But God holds it back,
He says there are still more mysteries for the soul to unravel.  

God walks alongside Death dedicated,
Though there is a summoning,  
There is also attentive listening and an incomprehensible consideration, 
Death is the fragile, insatiable stranger,  
While God is the boundless being that gazes deep into the chamber,
Two dissimilar entities that walk together.  


February 8, 2025.

Behind Closed Doors

Intriguing thought begins to waltz, 
With baby steps, timid and coy, 
Twirling into a master ploy -
It hesitates and then it halts…

The thought is tamed, the game is on, 
Fervid, wild word search is in play;
The frantic quill redrafts all day, 
The mind’s in frenzy, dusk to dawn. 

Masterpoem is to be born! 
Or is it vehemently verbose? 
One despised doubt… it hither goes - 
Into the waste bin, gravely torn! 

Genious has his highs and lows -
The price of greatness, I suppose!

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