hasb e haal

aye shOkh, arey O nadaaN
yeh tez dhaRkan yeh tapish
dard e qaum o millat nahiN
sub'h say kuch bukhaar nazla
hum aaghosh ho raha hay

Om Mani Padme Hum (draft 1)

i want to write a story

a story

about the waves

twirling around my bare feet

om mani padme hum

the waves from the atlantic

and the caribbean sea

must have traveled

unhampered miles

to embrace the pink sand

at eluthera's lighthouse beach

their foam, froth and fret

and the crisis of their history

meet the lover

only to move on

AllahHooAllahHooAllahHoo

waves could teach those

stuck forever in timelines

these waves encounter

(in haste i typed uncunter)

nets, debris, boats, breakwaters

clouds that float to peaks

snow, water, rivers and back to ocean

love and desire undeterred

paani paani ker gaee mujh kO Qalander ki yeh baat

tu jhuka jub ghair kay aagayna munn tera na tann

(iqbal- dayar e ish'q)

om mani padme hum

hoo AllahHooAllahHoo

paani paani paani paani

strangers we remain

in this

anomalous commute

strangers we're

after countless

hellos

exchanges

conversations

hugs

journeys

declarations

promises

shabistans*

and

strangers we remain

*noon meem rashid coinage.

place to spend one night.