The Madman

I recently came across this beautiful piece written by Khalil Gibran:

You ask me how I became a madman. It happened thus: One day, long
before many gods were born, I woke from a deep sleep and found all
my masks were stolen,--the seven masks I have fashioned an worn in
seven lives,--I ran maskless through the crowded streets shouting,
'Thieves, thieves, the cursed thieves.'

Men and women laughed at me and some ran to their houses in fear
of me.

And when I reached the market place, a youth standing on a house-top
cried, 'He is a madman.' I looked up to behold him; the sun kissed
my own naked face for the first time. For the first time the sun
kissed my own naked face and my soul was inflamed with love for
the sun, and I wanted my masks no more. And as if in a trance I
cried, 'Blessed, blessed are the thieves who stole my masks.'

Thus I became a madman.

And I have found both freedom of loneliness and the safety from
being understood, for those who understand us enslave something in
us.

But let me not be too proud of my safety. Even a Thief in a jail
is safe from another thief. 

This poem really sums up how we live with masks on all the time, hiding our true selves. We have molded ourselves based on the society's expectations. Let us be more more true to ourselves and learn to embrace ourselves as we are.

Miles to go before I sleep

Whose woods these are I think I know.
His house is in the village, though; 
He will not see me stopping here
To watch his woods fill up with snow.

My little horse must think it queer
To stop without a farmhouse near
Between the woods and frozen lake
The darkest evening of the year.

He gives his harness bells a shake
To ask if there is some mistake.
The only other sound's the sweep
Of easy wind and downy flake.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,
But I have promises to keep,
And miles to go before I sleep,
And miles to go before I sleep.

This is one my favorite poems by Robert Frost. There will be so many promises that we need to fulfill in our lifetime, so many responsibilities to be held and many expectations to be met. Sometimes it gets overwhelming and you just feel like running away somewhere far and just be by yourself with no one to question you or judge you.

This poem motivates you and makes you anxious at the same time. Miles to go before I sleep :)

Wanderlust-(WR)

The room was silent except for the sound of the tapping of keyboards. Rahul was sitting at his writing desk and emailing a client. Preethi was sitting on her bed, trying to finish an article, due to be submitted tomorrow. She finished it and shut her laptop. She looked up and saw that Rahul was still working. She sighed. Both of them had very demanding jobs and this was a common scene in their house everyday.

"What happened to us Rahul?" Preethi suddenly asked. Rahul lifted his head and looked at her, confused. "Remember when we were dating, we were such travel junkies. Every weekend we would take off to some or the other place. It was so much fun and it seemed like we had all he time in the world. But now, we just go to office, work, come home, work some more and go to sleep. There is no spark left. We are turning into those old, boring married couples with nothing to look forward to" Preethi said, morosely. "Well, what do you want to do then?" Rahul asked. "Lets go someplace for a few days, do some adventure, walk on the beach, soak in the rain, do anything but this" she said pointing to the laptop.

Rahul thought for a moment and suddenly started smiling. "You remember we had planned to go on a  road trip to Rajasthan but had cancelled in the last minute? Are you still interested?" he asked. "Yes, but how? We may require at least 2 weeks of leave" Preethi said thoughtfully. "This is what is wrong with us. We have given priority to work for a long time. Now lets prioritize and live for our selves for a few days. Come on Preethi just say yes" Rahul pleaded. "When do I start packing then?" Preethi asked and smiled at him.

Void-(WR)

She woke up in the morning and turned around to wish him good morning
But the other side of her bed was empty. She realized that he was no longer there.

When she absent mindedly prepared 2 cups of coffee instead of one, she realized he was no longer there.

When she saw a couple, laughing together and whispering sweet nothings in each others ears, she realized he was no longer there.

When she found his shirt and jacket strewn around in his cupboard, which still had his smell, she realized he was no longer there

At the end of the day when she returned to an empty house , she realized he was no longer there

When she felt a deep sense of loneliness and a void in her heart which can never be filled, she knew that he was no longer there and never coming back.

Uncouth-(WR)

"Remind me again Jane, why did we choose India as our holiday destination?" Rosie asked irritably, roaming around the streets of Jaipur. "Well it is a beautiful country. The people here are so friendly and there is so much of history to discover" Jane said excitedly. "Friendly people? Come on Jane, have you forgotten the taxi driver who swindled us at the airport?" Rosie asked, aghast. "Yes I remember. But every country has its fair share of people like that." "Well argue whatever you want Jane, but I will never come to love this country" Rosie said dismissively. Just then they heard someone calling out to them. "Madam, Madam!" a boy was shouting and came running to them. He had Rosie's bag in his hand. "You forgot at shop" he said in a broken English.

 Rosie immediately grabbed the bag and checked its contents and was relieved to find that everything was intact. She thanked the boy profusely and offered him some money. But he refused and went running back to his shop."You know what, this country is not so bad after all" Rosie said and smiled at her friend. "Well I am glad to hear that. I wonder what changed" Jane said and both of them laughed.

Together-(WR)

She looked at herself in the mirror. Her eyes looked lifeless and her face had become pale. She had lost most of her hair and weight. She couldn't recognize the person in the mirror anymore. Just then her husband came in and held her from behind.

"I look so ugly" she said. "No you look beautiful, as always" he said and kissed her on the neck. "Don't lie Vikas. I am not blind, I can see myself. I look like a ghost" Asha said and started crying. "Asha, please don't cry. You look just fine to me.We are in this together, remember? Together we will kick the cancer's butt". Hearing it, Asha smiled and hugged him.

Serendipity-(WR)

Her face looked familiar to Ishaan. But no matter how much he raked his memory he just couldn't remember her. She was talking animatedly with her friend. She is beautiful he thought. She lifted her hand and ran it through her hair. Ishaan's eyes fell on a big mole on her elbow and suddenly all the memories came back to him like an avalanche. He remembered the plump little girl wearing glasses and a runny nose. He remembered the time they used to run around in the field, plucking raw mangoes from the tree and eating with salt. She was his first friend in that unknown town where his father had been transferred. They were inseparable back then. He still remembered vividly, his last day in that town and they both had cried so much. They had promised to keep in touch, but somehow life happened and they had moved on. Chashmish! Ishaan thought. That is what he used to call her.

Ishaan walked towards her and said "Hey chashmish, remember me?" he said. She looked at him inquisitively and suddenly a sense of realization dawned on her and her lips slowly curved into a smile. "Ishaan! Oh my God" Meghna exclaimed and hugged him. "What are you doing here in this party?" she asked in disbelief. "Well, you may call it serendipity" he said and grinned at her.