twilight on the lake~
the heron and its shadow
stand equally still.
which one enters darkness first,
the bird or its reflection?
The western sky fades,
holding neither day nor night,
only their meeting.
For a moment, even trees
seem uncertain of their names.
upon one thin reed
a small sparrow balances dusk~
gold ripples below.
the lake holds the sinking sun;
silence steadies both of them.
Troubled by a deluge of turbulence,
Burdened by a stretch of delay,
Heart wrenched by love gone sour,
I sit alone in the silence of an evening room.
I am awakened by the beauty of hearty petals,
Joyful in their radiant colours.
I begin to hum a song,
A song about feeble love strengthened by the pure light of redemption.
Awake in the wilderness of roses,
Entranced by their beauty and hue,
Then melancholy won’t hold sway in the chambers of your heart,
And darkness won’t pervade the depths of your existence.
What is a ripple without its rhythm?
What is love without its pebbled road?
The journey of a tree is not visible from its exterior;
The casement conceals the tumult and pain.
Redemption songs are heard beyond twilight’s door.
September 29, 2026.
River bends westward.
Cottonwoods burn softly.
One crow crosses flame.
Light clings to treetops.
The day forgets itself.
Shadows inherit.
Sun now dips down low
Twilight starts to glow
Tangerine skyline
At distance align
Like a honeyed dream
Beside a soft stream.
An empty chair and the twilight,
Falling leaves adrift in the air,
Confetti for the coming night,
To doleful drizzle unaware.
The sun setting in wounded streaks,
A decadence in confinement,
Birds on leafless boughs, so weak,
How were those days of mine spent?
Please don't die on me yet,
Why don't you look and be near?
To a drooping silhouette,
I'm the one imprisoned here.
Surviving the penitence,
That's how to lose a stake,
It's me who passed the sentence,
For the king of mistake.
An empty chair and the twilight,
The early carols sound bleak,
For a heart alone in the night,
Like a fallen leaf that cannot speak.
November 14, 2004
TWILIGHT
I hear the handle turn
My time as slow as silence
For someone quiet yearns
My door, her brass is violence
Who's hand should show concern
Night, has just touched my life
I hope, someone as sure
In wait, In want, in twilight
At the saffron edge of twilight’s crossroads,
you pause, listening for what the air keeps;
a small shell rests in your palm, cool and sure,
its inner hush guiding you forward,
toward whatever waits beyond the turning.
In the garment factory
bloom the
delicate young women.
I live in a rented house.
When the bear-dance
comes to an end,
drawing
zeros
again and again,
I must return
from the school
of the bees.
Rivers
brush their teeth
with neem twigs
deep within
their waters,
there is
a secret
world:
horses and fireflies,
and a rain-wet
shiuli tree,
a vast
fragment
of stone,
all alone,
beneath
the vastness of space.
The jellyfish boats
are returning home.
Beyond the rooftop
of the three-storeyed house,
a pine tree
stands,
in its own mood,
the monsoon clouds.
Having dived
deep into
the depths
of my own being,
near the burnt-out
stub of a cigarette,
I find myself
wondering:
Should I
write anew
Goanna and Twilight?
I sat again on that old broken bench at the park,
Watching birds, people, and the last rays of the sun fade by,
Remembering our final words—spoken so far from kind.
A single tear I had to shed for the moments lost in time.
The skies turned suddenly ominous, though I knew not why—
But by the grace of God, a little girl smiled, ever so bright,
And I finally realized: forgiveness is not so far behind.
still water holds light~
a slow curve of fading day
resting in the reeds
The Twilight Zone is my home
A place where liars and thieves roam
It has been for 11 years
Nothing but my tears
My husband is all good with his brother a liar and thief
And for me there is no relief
Until this year the Twilight Zone I will leave
And leave my husband the only one to grieve
For his brother is the one that made the Twilight Zone
Never again will I roam
Far far away I will be
And let my husband enjoy the Twilight Zone
Invisible to others,
But visible to you,
Oh, Mother,
In the light but hidden from view,
Yet seen by you,
Oh, Mother,
I cried,
I don’t want the world to see me as I am,
I don’t want the world to see me in my messy puddle,
I don’t want the world to see this lesser part of me.
Oh, Mother, embrace me,
Oh, Mother, tell me again those words that guide me through a turbulent sea.
Oh, Mother, my heart bleeds, and my mind plummets into the darkest night.
There’s a deep silence.
My mother smiles and holds my hand,
As tears stream down my face.
August 18, 2026.
Surround me with your twilight kisses,
enfold me with the lights of your soul,
encircle me with your warm smiles
tonight and every night as the drift comes.
Hold me, pull me closer,
speak a million words for me,
kiss me with your subtle lips and
dream…dream with me.
Make me breathless as you reach for my hands;
cover my eyes with your charm
as we vividly float
into the beauty of the day.
Place me within a bubble and
let me be blown away by the beauteous breeze,
place your hand in mine and
fall in love.
Come to me when dusk is silently creeping,
whisper and captivate me
as we lose control and
fade into each other.
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