MEMORIES…
A Collection of Poems
© Vartika Malik 2015
Index
Part I
Memories
A Night in the Woods
The Meadow
Silent Sounds of Eternity
The Land of Love
My Life My Way
Part II
A New Dawn
Troubled Soul
A Better Tomorrow
Silenced Grief
The Maiden’s Song
The Day was far from Sight
Part III
Façade
Lost
Eternity
Again
Part I
Memories
I stood numb;
A smile on my face...
My heart was sore
and mind in a haze...
Remembering the past;
Each precious moment...
It was a delight;
It was torment...
I wished to remember;
I wished to forget;
So much was to cherish,
And so much to regret...
A hope, a wish...
A hug, a kiss...
A truth, a lie...
A tear, a sigh...
A laugh of joy...
A perfect ploy...
A word so tender...
A lavish splendor...
A flake of snow...
A dew drop's glow...
A drop of rain...
A burning pain...
I tried to remember;
I tried to forget;
So much was to cherish,
And so much to regret...
I stumbled forward,
with faltering steps;
Tears in my eyes,
that the harsh wind swept...
I walked and walked,
with no sense of direction...
Where I was going;
I have no recollection...
Away from the joy...
Away from the pain...
Away from the memories...
Which I couldn't live again...
I struggled to remember;
I struggled to forget;
So much was to cherish,
And so much to regret...
A Night in the Woods
An ere silence prevailed the night,
The woods turned dark, the moon shone bright;
The forest was quiet; unnaturally so...
Why I was there, I do not know.
Maybe I was searching for something;
Or maybe pointlessly wandering...
Lost in thoughts, I strolled forward;
On an old trodden path I rediscovered.
I walked for hours and hours and hours
So deep into the woods that I lost the stars...
A hyena's cry broke the silence,
An owl hooted in the distance.
And then the sound of rustling leaves;
Dire thoughts, the nervous mind weaves.
I shivered in Wind's cold embrace;
And low branches scratched my face.
I stumbled on a stone and fell;
For how long I lay there, I could not tell
The night grew cold and dark and damp,
And clouds covered Night's silver lamp;
I lay in the darkness, Alone; All alone...
Tears slid down my cheeks, as I wished for home...
The Meadow
The light was muted, the shadows long,
A dusty path, with a river trailing along;
The trees were high, the underbrush dense,
The air was damp with forest scents.
I walked the trail, with my mind in a haze;
And thought if I would ever escape the maze.
The path disappeared around a bend,
And dusky smell gave way to scents
of wildflowers and of autumn blooms,
And sunshine on lazy afternoons.
The meadow was perfect, small and round,
A gentle breeze blew dandelions around.
I walked through the tall dry yellow grass,
And watched the gold sun turn to brass.
I watched the sky with its rosy tint,
As a growing darkness began to hint;
Before my eyes the colors blended,
Soon so soon the day had ended.
Silent Sounds of Eternity
There was no sound, as I am sure,
Yet a music ringed in my ears.
A deep silence was settling in my bones,
Yet the sounds not present gave me fears.
The notes so high;
The feel so deep!
The sounds, the silence;
Gave me a creep.
As I walked,
from life to death,
The ocean was silenced,
Wind lost its breath.
All the sounds faded away,
Yet not the silence set in;
For a deep sensation made me numb,
The eternity of which suppressed my feelings.
The Land of Love
Across the river of hate,
Lays the land of love;
See through the veils of thoughts,
A world peaceful as a dove.
Happiness awaits you,
On the other shore;
Not much you have to do,
Just a few strong ores.
Feel the serenity within yourself,
When you cross the raging falls;
Leave behind all your troubles,
To you this soothing music calls.
But just remember this one thing,
Never leave a good deed undone;
As you pass from this world of darkness,
To a land brighter than the sun.
My Life My Way
Let me learn to follow my heart,
even if I don't tread the common path.
Let me speak what I wish to say,
Let me live my life my way.
Let me jump down waterfalls,
and hear the rush of water's calls.
I know I may be swept away,
but let me live my life my way.
Let me roam in deep dark forests,
till my mind would ease its unrest,
I'll teach my mind not to sway,
but let me live my life my way.
Above me stands the sky so tall,
beneath me the pit of darkness calls,
they'll stand up to me one day,
and ask if what I've lived is a life I say?
I don't believe that I can say,
that I have lived a single day,
until the one when I will say,
that I have lived my life my way.
Part II
A New Dawn
She lived to her will,
And paid its cost.
Her dreams are broken;
Hopes are lost...
Each day is a burden;
Each moment a pain;
It makes her weak,
Yet she tries again.
She bears the day
With teary eyes;
And waits for the night
With stifled cries.
The day would pass,
then comes the night;
With eyes so dark,
And pain so bright.
She bears the pain
With a silent weep.
With a broken heart,
She goes to sleep.
Early next morning,
Again she wakes;
After every night,
A new dawn breaks.
Troubled Soul
When life becomes too much to bear,
and no one near to console;
I stand alone upon the pier,
and lost gets my troubled soul.
Under the roars of the raging waves;
Midst the whispers of the wind;
Trying to find a calm, quiet place,
Where to cry out its sorrows till they end.
In the dark depths of the sea;
In the vast brightness of the sky;
Roams my soul in the most lonely
places to where it can fly.
It wishes to lose its troubles;
It wishes to rest in the earth.
It wishes to pop like bubbles;
It wishes to fly like a bird.
A Better Tomorrow
I was in terrible pain, but any
Sound hardly escaped my mouth.
Even in the worst of misery,
I dreaded to shout.
The pain soon became a habit;
The misery ceased to come.
I had lost all feelings.
Left there but was one –
A long forgotten sound;
A slow ringing bell;
A call that was fading,
As I walked through the gates of hell.
It led me through the miseries;
It led me through the sorrows;
It led me through the hard times
Promising better tomorrows…
Silenced Grief
Tears fall down from unknown eyes,
Tears roll down on unknown cheeks,
To the world they appear as tears of joy,
Yet in lonely silence, the bearers grieve.
They know no sadness, says the world;
As happy as ever man can be.
Yet their eyes behold shattered dreams;
On broken glass, they trod with bare feet.
Wounds are etched deep in their hearts;
Never with a true smile from life they part.
Yet never does the world believe,
That, the bearers, in silence grieve...
The Maiden’s Song
I heard a heavenly maiden sing,
a beautiful song of life.
I heard some little bells ring;
playing the tune alike.
I heard the whisper of the wind,
past the field of rice.
I heard the splatter of the rain,
against the roof of tiles.
I closed my eyes and listened,
to the maiden's song of life;
All my senses were lost,
in the melody of her voice.
I noticed that the tinkling,
of bells were sounds of her sighs;
Her breath made the wind rise;
The raindrops fell from her eyes.
The Day was far from Sight
I was burning in a pain hot white;
Every passing second felt like a fortnight;
When nothing in the world felt right,
Painful memoirs, the psyche invite;
The darkness appeared too bright...
And the day was far from sight...
The pain reached an unbearable height
I tried to bear it with all my might;
Till the end, I kept up the fight;
But nothing could save me from the plight.
And even when hope was lost in the night...
The day was far from sight...
Part III
Facade
The eyes see a mere facade...
Like the calm of a lake;
Still; Serene; Breathtaking;
But beneath the tranquil surface lurk
swelling currents;
An endless cycle of crests and falls
Which pulls you in, deeper and deeper;
Till you don't want to retain
Thoughts; Sanity; Existence.
Lost
I lost all love;
I lost all hate.
I lost all care;
I lost my faith.
I lost the truth;
I lost all lies.
I lost all sense
of wrong and wright.
I lost the end,
before I could start;
When I lost my soul
in the depths of the dark.
Eternity
I am a nameless,
Searching for my identity.
I am a blank paper,
recalling words once etched on me.
I am alone in a crowd,
looking for individuality.
I am the start,
of an everlasting journey.
I have no end;
I am eternity.
Again
The day flew away,
And the night came…
Darkness enveloped me;
I called your name
Again and again…
From dusk to dawn;
I bore the pain…
Dreams tormented me;
I called your name
Again and again…
© Vartika Malik 2015