Arbitrary patterns, be it said,
Behove a poet who has nought to say:
Consider if you will, the holy dread
Descending on him when he has to play
Egregious games of lexicon and sense:
Ferocious is his hunt for weighty meaning:
Garrulousness has no innate value - hence
Hermetic references, frantic gleaning,
Intemperate allusions all too often
Juxtaposed with useful phrases in a
Kulturkampf, with memes supposed to soften
Lacunae like the way we treated Jinna,
Matriculee of Lincoln’s Inn. No joke.
Nehru, Inner Temple. Things you learn!
Our planet is a stellar artichoke,
papaveraceous, as the Medes discern.
The partition of India as per Indian Independence Act 1947, resulted in
the end of the British rule in the sub-continent. The two self-governing
countries, India and Pakistan, came into existence at midnight of 14-15,
August, 1947. Pandit Jawarharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India,
gave a visionary speech at that hour. The following poem is inspired by
that speech and uses some of its phrases taken from Wikipedia.
Many years ago, we made a tryst with destiny,
time has come now to redeem the vow credibly.
When the world sleeps at this hour of midnight,
India wakes up to freedom from the pitiful plight.
Before the advent of liberty we’ve suffered pain,
but past is gone, present calls us to a new domain.
We’ve the will to face the challenges that lie in store,
while great future before us is opening its door.
Indian Independence,1947. In the voice of Pandit Jawarharlal Nehru.
When I tell you to build dams over rivers and seas,
To build bridges betwixt beings and make existence ease;
You laugh at me and politicize each one of my fights,
I don't quit; I don't accept failures; I am at my heights;
I am Gandhi, Nehru, Mandela, Luther, Lincoln, oh!
Who, on the paths of Jesus, Allah, and Ram always go..!!!
I
If it's in the Bible
Absolutely said
Give me handle or epistle:
"Love is all." Not said
II
John the Revelator
Says God is LIGHT, first
John says it in 1st Letter
God showed it in Genesis
III
Light sends darkness off
One stroke, one switch, one fire
Love is of Him not "God is Love" -
Love is good, LIGHT IS HIGHER
Notes:
1. John's First Epistle, 1 John 1: 1-10
2. When Mahatma Gandhi Ji was assassinated in 1947, J. Nehru said, "The light is gone out of the world," not LOVE IS GONE OUT OF THE WORLD. Nehru, unwittingly, echoed Jesus: " I am the light of the World," in John 12 (verse 8).
3. In the Fourth Gospel (NT), verse 9, expands on he, himself, is a witness to The Light, but Jesus "is the true LIGHT," yet rejected because men love their darknesses.
Optimism pranced up and down in hip hugger bellbottoms
Joy resonated from those who wanted peace not war
Gratitude basked from the corners of those who had not been drafted
It was 1969, and we were in our youth, full of confidence.
Emotions ran high; the Viet Nam grayscales were ruining our news.
We decided to buck the old ways, and begin anew, accepting everyone
We did not adhere to the absolute musts of the fifties or sixties.
We wore love beads and Nehru jackets, and smoked pot in cities.
In our hand-embroidered blue jeans which had not been washed for days,
We hitch-hiked to the promised land of California, or to New York City.
We were full of idealistic ideas and ideals. We were the youth.
We knew more than we had ever known in 1969.
Baldies of the world, do not despair!
It's not the end, you just lost some hair!!
Balder men are more virile, thus spake a sage
And many a woman "testify" to this old adage..
Balder men are noted to be wise and mature
Trusted by everyone, their thoughts kind and pure
No need for shampoos, combs or for hair cream
No need for a barber even in the wildest dream
Every day we can have a fresh head bath day
Not just once a week or only on one Sunday
Hairline well receded, you never seem to age
As you reach middle age, that'll be an advantage
You can fit into a cap or hat or any headgear with ease
Or you can wear a stylish wig, as fashions never cease
Father of our Nation was bald, so were Nehru and Patel
You may be considered great, and you can weave a tale!
So, Baldies of the world, don’t despair!
It is not the end, you just lost some hair!
embroidered daisies
hip hugger bell bottoms
1970
Nehru jacket
yellow happy faces
1971
maternity tops
and a quickie wedding
those dhrammed bell bottoms
Baldies of the world, do not despair!
It's not the end, you just lost some hair!!
Balder men are more virile, thus spake a sage
And many a woman "testify" to this old adage..
Balder men are noted to be wise and mature
Trusted by everyone, their thoughts kind and pure
No need for shampoos, combs or for hair cream
No need for a barber even in the wildest dream
Every day we can have a fresh head bath day
Not just once a week or only on one Sunday
Hairline well receded, you never seem to age
As you reach middle age, that'll be an advantage
You can fit into a cap or hat or any headgear with ease
Or you can wear a stylish wig, as fashions never cease
Father of our Nation was bald, so were Nehru and Patel
You may be considered great, and you can weave a tale!
So, Baldies of the world, don’t despair!
It is not the end, you just lost some hair!
The psychedelic oranges and greens of the seventies
Brought scads of foils and flocks into homes that had been
Saturated before with flowered, and vined wall papers.
Nehru jackets, hippies, flower children, and Viet Nam soldiers
Permeated the news, saturating our breakfast newspapers.
Colored TV is exciting, but worth the extra expense? Not sure.
Children are joining communes, making new families.
Questioning their parents, their politicians, and the war.
A war which the young soldiers are not allowed to question.
Religion is losing her grip on the family.
Sex is no longer blatantly reserved for marriage.
A revolutionary time brought about on the heels of hero assassinations.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and the Kennedy boys glancing down
From their heavenly seats, wondering what is to become of us.
I wish I could say things got better….
Wearing whirls, swirls, paisley too.
A jazzy, snazzy, bell bottomed you.
Slinky hip huggers with large chunky belts in style.
White Go Go boots that never walk a country mile.
Faux fringed jackets, fake fur vests, tall high boots too.
Gypsy skirts with mismatched patterns of every hue.
Please let your belly button show, my dear.
Wear the tightest jeans to accent your rear.
As long as your jeans flare out as wide as a skirt
And drag along enticingly in Woodstock’s dirt.
Homemade embroidery on blouses, and dainty braids.
Unless you deem to do an Afro, beautifully made.
Tight mini-skirts that show off your thighs.
Nehru jackets with high necks are a prize.
Headbands made to match every outfit.
The 70’s was strutted. Don’t you doubt it!
Vietnam War in black and white, every night on TV
Burning bras seemed okay for everybody but me.
Hippies and flower children seemed pretty wild.
To me in the Midwest, pregnant with child.
Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru
In buttonhole set daily a red rose new
His charisma couldn’t beguile the neighbor
The dragon disgorged fire in ‘62’s war.
January 24, 2019
(Note : Jawaharlal Nehru (1889-1964) was the first Prime Minister
of independent India. His charismatic leadership initiated the offer
of peaceful coexistence, goodwill and brotherhood to China, but
as a result of Sino-Indian border dispute China attacked India in 1962.)
My friend
Lazarus of Bollongre died
In an accident.
He shook it more than twice
When he peed on the fence of Nehru park,
And it cost him his life when a truck
Rammed him from behind.
All of us,
His bereaved friends, knew
He wasn't Lazarus of Bethany, and
None of us a carpenter either.
But we shouted at the morgue's door,
'Lazarus, come forth', beatified by barrels
Of rice-beer we drank in mourning.
At his funeral,
Two days later, we buried him
With pomp and gaiety.
His coffin rested on our shoulders
On the way to the cemetery, and we carry
The fond bruises till this day.
His soul
Rested for a while at Balpakram,
And he washed his feet in the black pool.
We hung chunks of smoked meat around the ancient rock,
Food for his onward journey, and we shouted again,
'Lazarus, go forth'.
And he left for his eternal home, and
We raised our glasses one more time for the road.
It was a bigly time ago.
I was rock and rolling.
The guys wore gel or mop-top beads;
The girls were cool strolling.
Asking for her time, forthrightly,
Permissions all obtained.
A friendly double date, indeed,
In stylish dress, constrained.
Hands held, nervous knees, butterfly
Bellies and Summer Sun.
Zombie kids shuffling to their doom
With cold-foot pizza fun.
Names all changed to insure the past:
Pete and Prue ate like hogs.
Joe loved June with all of his heart --
Until the girls shrieked, "frogs!"
Joe chased Pete around the table,
Marinara splattered.
Napkins called an encore order.
June and Prue both flattered.
Joe and Pete were at it, again.
Girls with sticky-face smiles.
We settled down and sauntered home.
A night of teasing trials.
Just before parting, Joe kissed June --
So ... unsymmetrical:
He was cloud-sailing, upside down.
June smelled boy chemical.
July 14, 2016
Pink Domino - Poetry Contest
Carefree evening
Arriving for a concert in the park
I set up my blue lawn chair
Pulled out my cool water bottle
A sun hat covering my hair
The green grass closely manicured
Warmth from the sun on my face
I sit back, relax, think back in time
When the British Invasion took place
Time ticking backward reveals
Nehru jackets and hip hugger jeans
aqua net hairspray and breck shampoo
Screaming teenage girls, such a scene
The band takes the outside stage
Donning Beatles haircuts and attire
Singing I wanna hold your hand
Setting grey-haired girls hearts on fire
Freedom at Mid-Night
Huge crowd of a small town, lighted lamps and fireworks
No electricity, the only battery radio of my town on stage
Airing the first freedom speech of *Nehru sparking thus:
India made a tryst with destiny with many brakes
Now the time has come to redeem our pledge
At mid-night hour the world sleeps, India wakes.
A moment comes, but comes rarely in history
When we step out from the old to the new age
As the soul of India, long subdued, finds victory.
+++++++
*A great freedom fighter and the first Prime Minister of India.
January 29, 2015
Form: Tercets
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