Pretty things found in dreary places
Rainbows reflected in window panes
Muddled images gazing back halfway
City lights appeared as blurry flashes
Neon light signs in myriads of colours
Hotel nights; a simple luxury but none of the glamour
Smudged ink poetry on typewriter font
Wax sealed scrolls and handwritten letters
Ancient stamps and foreign coins
Unusual animals and panoramic views
Plants growing in peculiar places
Withered flowers and flourishing gardens
Retro fashion from back in the ages
Author quotes and hardback book covers
Messy sketches and canvas paintings
Scented candles and incense sticks
Gemstone collections vastly in nature
Vintage camera filters in colour tinted light
Movie scenes with subtitle quotes
Cat memes and Tumblr anecdotes.

Varna

There she is,
sobbing on the floor,
herself in love.
She lies,
keeping her sanity on a check.

She is my bottle of sadness,
dancing with my insecurities,
pulling my anxiety triggers.
She will kiss my wounds,
And
it won’t matter.

V

Malta I went

To a new world descent

Where beaches are sunny

and the people funny

Mingle across rugged lagoons

scatter across islets

swoons

Coastal blue of sand devours

overseen by watchful towers

Its buildings still textured with stone

yet in the day it sparkles, shone,

The land formerly of Orders,

of the Cross, its borders,

a sparkle in the Great Sea.

I’m lost for words,

’round my head girds,

How pleased I am to be here.

But as they say in Malta,

from now till I leave,

“Għandi pjaċir.”

Chehara Vitaran

I hate it when the nights come

because before I had you.

momentarily, I only have your memories

they don’t let me sleep

I was terrified of the dark

I still am,

I used to disappear behind you

now it’s your fantasies.

Your habits, clothes and your body.

I hate the midnight howls

they terrify me and give me chills

I used to listen to your lullaby over them

now, it’s just your repeated absurd videos

that I play incessantly.

I hate the lightning at midnights

they shake me internally

I used to burrow inside you and make love tremendously

now all I have is you portrayed in my mind

when I hear them frequently

I hate the downpours yet again

they recall my past

I confronted it with you once

wanted to tell you more

but you slept with utmost peace

before it was with someone else,

now it’s with you.

I hate the rules

because I was disciplined and used to follow them

now I break all the rules while I am awake all night.

 

What I didn’t hate was the moon

it was as luminous and pure as you

now it’s just your pictures that only seem like true you

and the stars,

everyone sees them shine, just like you

but now it’s just the dazzle that enlightens me up.

I used to search for your arm and reside in that,

for the warmth and comfort.

but now it’s just those commitments and promises.

how beautiful is this love

it makes us seem everything so differently and so divine?

sometimes, I think I don’t need a reciprocation

to love or hate someone, it shows us

what powerful emotions we have in this universe.

 

And yet, I hate my heart

it fell again

earlier for you,

now only for my respect.

Shrasti

I want to run away sometimes,
To find a place filled with bliss,
That can quieten the chaos that delves in me,
I’m sure it’s worth the risk.
But no matter where I go,
The chattering never ends,
It’s my own mind, going on and on,
In a circular argument .
It makes its own problems, worries too much.
It won’t calm down.
How I wish I could just shut it off,
Till I hear no sound.
In that peace, I want to stay for some time.
Before I head back to the noise.
Clear my head and find myself,
Serene, content and poised.

                                                                                                                                                            Sharmi