Darkest Hour

Her mind raced at a rapid pace

Hard-pressed lips slightly curved

A teardrop rolled down her cheek

As she gazed intently at the platter served.

Life is full of ups and downs

A mix of sugar and spice she thought

Her platter though, was differently prepared

The spice content more than sought.

Fruits of labor are always sweet

An advice she is continually fed

With grit determination she does her duty

Gallantly ignoring the tears she shed.

Lifting up her shattered spirits

Brushing the insignificant injuries aside

She sturdily strides on the uneven path

With all her fortitude and might.

As the cloud of challenges hovers above

Mercilessly testing her willpower

She adamantly refuses to give in

Since day breaks after the darkest hour.

Stand Out

They say change is the new constant

But, I beg to differ.

They partied throughout the night

And I lay in my blanket concealing the quiver.

The tremors of loneliness shook me hard

The longing for companionship made me cry

As tears rolled down my cheeks

I took comfort in solitude and looked up at the starry sky.

The glistening stars above my head

Made me introspect and ponder

We tend to gaze hard at a single star

And ignore the cluster; a larger wonder.

I went on to realize after much thought

It is the single star which stands out from the rest

Embrace yourself for what you are

Following the crowd does not make you the best.

Change yourself to become better

Not to get accepted by the lot

Believe in yourself a little more

And chuck the miseries out that door.

Uncaptured

In the glitzy world of social media

Where irrelevant snaps are gleefully shared

The empty box made her awfully sad

And with hopeful eyes she always stared.

Steadily shuffling through the gallery

Did not do her much good

Months soon turned into years

And with dampened spirits she silently stood.

A tiny nose and crooked teeth

Lack luster locks in a messy bun

She curved her lips to fake a smile

The displeasing sight made her adjourn.

The mirror showcased her imperfections

And so did the ruthless camera lens

They selectively captured what hardly mattered

But nevertheless, that made her tense.

The empty box longed for a picture

Waiting to exhibit her flawed features

But both encapsulated half the truth

Neglecting the soul of beautiful creatures.

The virtual world is a ruthless place

Implications of a bad picture are manifold

She patiently waits for a human lens

To discover her innocent heart of gold.

Believe

Cold gusty winds made the trees sway

All lay draped in their blankets, except one.

Beads of perspiration covered his forehead

The tedious task was no longer fun.

Countless stacks of books and study papers

Lay strewn across his tiny table

As all enjoyed the wintry weather

He flipped through the pages and kept stable.

Eyes tightly shut and face buried in his hands

He wished he could escape reality

With the exam date fast approaching

His mind raced with thoughts of self pity.

They say life is full of ups and downs

But the latter refused to let go of him

Struggling to keep his spirits alive

He looked up at the face not so prim.

Staring hard into the mirror

He discovered what he needed the most

A dose of inspiration and grit determination

Those pair of eyes revealed what success cost.

When the uglier side of life takes hold of you

Thoughts of self criticism constantly hover

Work for those pair of gleaming eyes in the mirror

With time, happiness and success shall take over.

Devil In Disguise

With bated breath she quietly stood

Occasional cries added to the noise

The heated argument continued endlessly

But failed to oppress her whimpering voice.

The clock hung on the plastered wall

A bomb ticking in absolute disguise

Half past midnight its hands revealed

Each second witnessed louder cries.

The cry of the woman she idolized

Tears of oppression was what she beheld

The oppressor being a roaring red flag

Like a raging bull she attacked and yelled.

Outbursts of fury lashed at the accused

Left him bitter and perplexed

Unprepared to hear the voice of change

Her courage made him further vex.

Futile attempts to extinguish the fire

Made him leave rather reluctantly

The savior stood with the suffering woman

Her proud heart pumping buoyantly.

A tight slap on the face of patriarchy

She took a stand against injustice

Raise your voice before it is late

Refuse to be a damsel in distress.