ज़रा सा वक़्त!

छोटे छोटे खिलौनों के लिए ज़िद करते थे ,
आज खुद ले सकते हैं पर चाह बदल गयी,
अब तो मन चाहता है कि यादों के समंदर में गोता लगाओ,
और ढूँढके सारे ख़ज़ाने वापिस लाओ!

जिनसे हक़ से लड़ते थे वो इंसान वापिस लाओ,
पुरानी डायरी में लिखी हुई वो तारीख वापिस लाओ,
हँसते खेलते बीती हुई वो शाम वापिस लाओ,
छोटी छोटी बातों पे मिले वो इनाम वापिस लाओ!

और गोते लगाके ले आओ गुज़रा वक़्त,
क़ाश हम बंद करें घड़ी और थम जाए वो वक़्त,
जिस याद में हो हम गुम, ले जाए वहीँ वो वक़्त,
जब तक मन ना भर जाए, रुक जाए ज़रा सा वक़्त!

लम्बे लम्बे सालों से बस कुछ पल वापिस चाहते हैं,
हमेशा के लिए ना सही, तो उधार ही चाहते हैं,
हम कौनसा वक़्त अपने साथ ले जाना चाहते हैं,
बस उन खुशियों का एहसास दोबारा चाहते हैं!

(Can't stop being in awe about the speed of passage of time)

यादों का खज़ाना..!!

वक़्त तो बस गुज़रता जाता है,

हम समझ ही नहीं पाते कहाँ गया!

पंछी की तरह उड़ जाता है,

हम खोजते रह जाते धरती की गलियों में!

बीती बातों को बीते ज़माने बीत गए,

हम क़ैद रह गए ना जाने किन पलों में!

जब भी यादों की गठरी खोलें,

खज़ाना सा बिख़र जाता है मन के मंच पे!

प्यारी प्यारी उन बातों को बीते ज़माना गुज़र गया?

छोटी छोटी उन रातों को रूठे ज़माना गुज़र गया!!

आईना जब देखते हैं तब एहसास होता है उम्र का,

मन तो शायद बचपन की गलियों में ही रह गया!

वो लुका-छुपी पकड़ा-पकड़ी के खेल जो खेलते थे हम,

खेलने वाले वो दोस्त के बजाय, या तो वक़्त था या मन!

दिन ना जाने कैसे ज़माने हो गए,

और दोस्त भी दुनिया की भीड़ में खो गए! 

ना जाने क्या जादू चलाया ज़िन्दगी ने हम पे,

हम ज़िद्दी बच्चे से बड़े समझदार हो गए!

वो माँ का आँचल, वो पापा की गोदी,

वो शादी का मंडप, और पहली खुश-खबरी,

अरे! कैसे भाग चला गया वक़्त?

अब तो हमारी गुड़िया भी बड़ी हो गयी!

ऐसे ही ज़िन्दगी बीत जायेगी फ़िसलती रेत की तरह,

और हम सोचते ही रह जाएंगे कि वक़्त गया तो कहाँ गया!!

(Fascinated by the speed of time)

Generations Apart...

This post is based on certain discussions that I have recently had with friends of my age regarding how things aren't the same with parents as they were during our childhood.

We all love our parents. And as much as we would like to believe that love is blind, we cannot deny that love isn't deaf and dumb. There are times when we hear them say things which don't fit in our logical minds. We have a completely different opinion on those topics. Sometimes we end up arguing with them but it does't help. The arguments either leave a bitterness in our hearts for some time, or just fall on deaf ears. Sometimes we even get to hear things like "you are too grown up to listen to your parents". Such statements further increase our anguish and we feel worse about these differences we have in our opinions.

Let us take a trip through our growing years and make an analysis. Why is it that we think so different from what they do when they are the ones who brought us up. Aren't we supposed to be a reflection of what our parents are? Isn't reproduction all about creating your own self, again? Let's see...

As kids we hear and understand what our parents say. We learn what they teach us. And that's it. That's truth for us. We do not know whether it's correct or not. And we don't feel the need to know. That's because our mind never challenges it. As we start growing up and meeting more people, we come across different thoughts and different beliefs. Simultaneously our logic starts developing. We start developing the power of reasoning. We start attaining capability to analyze what suits us. We start deciding whether we fit in one system or the other. We start creating our own systems as well. We get exposed to the world and our perceptions change.

Meanwhile, our parents are still living life in a similar way as they were. Of course change is inevitable. But the changes in their lives are usually not as drastic as those in ours. That's simply because they are grownup enough and we are still growing. Life was different while growing up in their times. And after an era, while we are growing, times are totally different. And so are our lives and the way we perceive it. 

It is no rocket science to decipher that such differences are natural amidst generations. But yet we fail to understand them. We fail to accept them.  Because they don't help us hear what our logical minds want to hear. We might even feel guilty about thinking against the thoughts of our creators. After all we do realize that we are what we are because they let us make our lives our way. And how do we overcome this discomfort caused due to the guilt? How do we cope up with those olden illogical theories? How do we bridge the gap and break the wall?

The simplest way is to understand that love and logic don't go along well. Yes. Give it another thought if you need to. Love defies logic and logic doesn't always support love. So the first thing you need to do is separate your logic from the love you have for the elderly. Now that you love them in their absolute state, let's put that important logical thinking to some good use.

Your beliefs are quite strong, aren't they? Now imagine how strong must be their belief system given that they have seen life almost twice as much as you have. When you are so sure about the correctness of your beliefs at this age, they are obviously double sure at their age. You may be ready to change your beliefs given that supporting logic convinces you. But it might not be the same with them. And that's ok. Yes, it is. 

Resistance to change increases with age. Look at yourself now and compare how flexible your mind is as compared to when you were a kid. I'm sure you can see your comfort zone has shrunk over years. Today you might be ready to relocate to another continent if you get a good opportunity but your parents might not even budge at the prospects of a much better life in the neighboring city. So what? That's probably how their life has made them. And probably they didn't have as much choice to mould their lives their ways as you do. You'd never know!

The point is that we need to stop expecting them to change. We need to understand that no matter how necessary change is, it can't be denied that we are resistant to it. And their resistance is naturally going to be stronger than ours. Most of our "problems" with older generations will be solved if we stop linking them with logics and reasoning and just accept them as they are. After all, life is too short and differences will only increase the distance of travel.

[Additional related reads from my blog: Love Defies Logic... ]

My Fallen Angel !!!

When you had fallen from the Heavens up there,

I certainly knew God had sent you for me here,

I rushed towards you to check if you were hurt,

But you sparkled, without even a speck of dirt!

When life seemed dark, your smile shone bright,

Even with those lost hopes, everything felt right,

I loved you so much, you were always on my mind,

It wouldn't be amiss to say your love made me blind.

You were shy, and I knew it was an angelic feature,

I admired you, Oh so much! My Heavenly Creature!!

You were my cute Angel, Fallen for me on this earth,

Only for me, Oh Cutie! You were granted this Birth!!

You brought me good luck, my only lucky charm,

I would keep you precious, never allow any harm.

I would save you from the witches' enchantment,

And keep you aloof from the bitches' entrapment!

If you were just a dream, I wanted it to end never,

And for that my love, I was ready to sleep forever,

Nightmares of losing you, made me find a way,

That would keep us together forever, my way!

I knew if you ever walked off leaving me deserted,

You'd come back to me sooner, my heart asserted,

For our love, with this world we could have fought,

Would it really happen or so I merely thought?

I would hold you so strong, never let you fall,

That descend from the Heavens, would be all.

But fallen you had once, and fell you again,

That one was a pleasure, and this one - pain.

I thought life was complete and love graven,

The day, for me, you had fallen from Heaven,

But to all my love, bringing shame and disgrace,

You, my beloved Angel, have fallen from grace!

I wouldn't loathe your presence, but continue your addiction,

Only if you hadn't lost your respect yourself in my conviction,

I'm glad you were just a charming dream that forever didn't last,

Not my mind's entirety, you deserve just a modest corner in my past!

Eternal Retrospection!

I look into the mirror with my lips smiling

And I'm quite aware my mind has qualms piling

I move closer and peep into my own eyes

And suddenly my dazzling smile dies

Is my life as perfect as I had premeditated?

Or has it, on a wrong path, widely deviated?

Now my lips neither smile nor frown

And in this important thought, I drown

Did I move on to fulfilling dreams I had treasured?

Or by my own wrong choices, was I pressured?

I know that it isn't exactly as I had always wanted,

But with every wrong thing, it isn't even haunted!

Nothing is wrong, yet nothing is right!

In nothingness, with this world I fight!!

Is the delicate drape of my fancies torn

Because every rose comes with a thorn?

Are my desires too much to gain

That it takes bearing so much pain?

No, I'm not a coward; pain I don't fear!

But so much on my mind is still unclear!!

Is it the world that's really so rough?

Or is it my mind just playing tough?

I have seen everything has always had a reason,

Why do I still feel there's surely some treason?

Why can't I decide if it’s all good or very bad?

I don't even know whether I'm joyful or sad!

Nothing is wrong, yet nothing is right!

In nothingness, with Myself I fight!!