Penned down

"Can we meet?" The clamour cried. Spouting ideas, many dates were tried. July 12th was favourite by a mile. Planning and bantering in our usual style. Quiet warriors two, lifted the yoke; Warmed us as a group, ice broke. Mutual conversation, easily flowed. Memories of past, ceaselessly glowed. Reinforced the truth to us - You belong; To a fantastic group, which takes all along. Akin to the warm winds, and cold waves, Our differences aside, our walls caved. Those two days, our teens returned. Gossips and stories, many churned. "When can we meet again?" the clamour cries. There in, the reunion's success lies.

 It started as a chance statement "Are we doing a 25 year reunion?". Like a snowball gathering momentum, this avalanche became the driving force for us for the past 3 months. Tickets booked, arrangements made, T shirts printed. There were tiny angels in our class volunteers of Raghavan and Akila.  There were willing partners in crime who joined at once, and then the reluctant attendees. A few recalcitrant ones stayed silent. But as the date got by, the tide became higher. What was amazing is that people who had left the school mid way were as eager to come as ones who had graduated out of it. This boisterous bunch had an impact on people, irrespective of the time they had been in it. For me, It started with an early morning road trip with BK and Siva. We three hadn't even spoken a dozen times in school, but bonded like old buddies. Aided by common love for contextual comedy, music and gossip, 7 hours seemed like a breeze. The actual meet up at the beach resort was seamles...

The blade of grass quivers, The rain laden wind blows First rains of summer comes And everything around slows. I stop to watch the marriage Of the sea in the sky and on earth. The tiny droplets that announce Tiny streams giving birth. I wonder why water is calming? The rains, the waves the deep sea. Do they connect the blade of grass, The sky, the earth and me?

  Happy new year! Time is a weird warden It tortures us, yet heals. It is invisible, yet I feel. It's judgy eyes upon me.

One step forward, Two steps back, Tires me down. Let me go ahead. Let me go. The past, please. You have no Relevance. Cease. Stop. Don't invade Every thought, Every action of mine Reality I forgot. Fade away, go. Let me live now. Let only the smiles Stay. And Love.

Was it a whirlwind; or  a pause? Nevertheless strange year it was. Loved yet hated; unprecedented. Was it all accidental or intended? Some thrived, some survived. "How long?", we all cried; Secretively loving it all along! Saying it aloud seemed wrong. For we did find a bit of calm- Sans the traffic, morning alarms, no school, no movie nights, Roads bereft of gaudy neon lights. Learnt to connect to family, friends Gratitude, kindness, making amends. Which Gave us the rock to hold on. This year, showed life has to go on.

You are awesome! Even if you don't workout everyday; Or an instrument you don't learn to play. You may not cook exotic food Staying calm is all you could! You are awesome! If you are pushing through the day, Sometimes feeling you've lost the way. Or sitting quiet is all you want to do, Among the din to learn something new. You are awesome! When you smile and let worries go; Sing songs, whose lyrics you dont know- Watching the Birds; feeling the breeze. You are awesome, know that please!