Narcissism

His remark was on target, a precise incision
Piercing her soft tender heart, a gory vision
 
 
Where had their infinite mutual love slunk
Reservoirs of their affection dried, sunk?
 
 
Their romance was a much  touted affair
People spoke about it then, everywhere
 
 
The marriage and long guest list of VIPs
Ballroom reception and honeymoon trips
 
 
All were the talk of the town, a grand event
A frantic planning with lots of money spent
 
 
Soon all excitement subsided,  routine crept in
An uneventful life with work and play therein
 
 
Until one fine day,  they were visited by the stork
All concerned toasted and sang, popping the cork
 
 
The twins made a rocking entry rocking her boat
Attention was diverted from him, as was her wont

He resented time spent with babies and his resultant neglect
She was hard put to convince him babies needed her to protect

He was an only, rich child conditioned to be always number one
Thus he forgot paternal duties, blinded by selfish needs, rotten

Thwarted, he began to dislike his baby sons much to her chagrin
As mom, she was helpless, as lover she cringed at this, life’s tailspin

Blinded by his own neglect and imaginary slights he began to stay out
Her busy day flew in maternal duties and nights became total blackout

Finally matters came to a head,  he found love and attention in other arms
She was heartbroken,  then she The MOM took up cudgels like firearms

She returned home to her old nest with twins sleeping on her loving breast
Grandparents, friends rallied around like a fort, assured she will  top this test

Indomitable fighting spirit made her shine as mom, daughter and entrepreneur
Business thrived as the twins survived immersed in love, soon becoming mature

Role reversal took place and soon reins changed hands with change of guard
Twins were both level headed knowing well what real life and living were about

The old curmudgeon meanwhile was left alone as fair weather friends flew away
Full of shame he recalled now forgotten mistreated family in past he did betray

Repentance ate like a canker into his grieving soul as he lay dying, calling her name
His lament penetrated her soul, with twins she reached his bedside without any blame

Father n sons bid farewell, only one solitary paternal blessing worth a lifetime
She forgave all his trespasses as experience had taught her to live a life sublime

His final journey began where he was again the CYNOSURE of all weeping eyes
His departing soul thus rejoiced as this came to pass finally at his own demise!!!

 

A little neglect may breed great mischief:..for want of a nail the shoe was lost; for want of a shoe the horse was lost; and for want of a horse the rider was lost.
Benjamin Franklin, Poor Richard’s Almanack, 1758

Selfish persons are incapable of loving others, but they are not capable of loving themselves either. - Erich Fromm  American, Psychologist Quotes
Men are what their mother’s made them. Emerson, The Conduct of Life, 1860

As selfishness and complaint pervert the mind, so love with its joy clears and sharpens the vision. - Helen Keller American, Author Quotes
Pity the selfishness of lovers: it is brief, a forlorn hope; it is impossible.
Elizabeth Bowen Irish, Novelist Quotes

Maternity is on the face of it an unsociable experience. The selfishness that a woman has learned to stifle or to dissemble where she alone is concerned, blooms freely and unashamed on behalf of her offspring. - Emily James Putnam

Whoever loves becomes humble. Those who love have, so to speak, pawned a part of their narcissism. - Sigmund Freud Austrian, Psychologist

Daybreak

Night canvas folds itself curling within
Stars dim turning their switches off therein

Fingers of darkness too lighten insipidly fading away
Moon retreats to sleep soundly giving in to another day

Streetlamps, lonely sentinels of concrete jungles
Turn off one by one in precision without rumbles

Owls and bats now silently go to rest as the night
Creeps away gently heralding the onset of daylight

Birds go about their business all chirruping in unison
Street traffic gains momentum as sounds of life beckon

The horizon as always defines a distinctively alluring sky
Where crisscross streaks of orange gold fingers playfully ply

The golden round disc of the sun makes a showing once again
Spilling shimmering orange golden reflections in flowing ocean

The bright blue sky appears lively with planes and flocking birds
All intent on reaching somewhere before turning back homewards

Church bells and temple and mosques all open their welcoming doors
Inviting all the laity, saints and sinners as them the god equally adores

Springy step and day’s challenges to be met head on, resolves we make
It is after all the dawning of another exciting new challenging daybreak

 

 A rare experience of a moment at daybreak, when something in nature seems to reveal all consciousness, cannot be explained at noon. Yet it is part of the day’s unity.
Charles Ives American, Composer Quotes

If your efforts are sometimes greeted with indifference, don’t lose heart. The sun puts on a wonderful show at daybreak, yet most of the people in the audience go on sleeping.
Ada Teixeira

 

It is well to be up before daybreak, for such habits contribute to health, wealth, and wisdom.–Aristotle  BC 384-322, Greek Philosopher

one of my favorite songs by Cat Stevens
(his voice and music is awesome)

Morning Has Broken- by Cat Stevens
  
 
Morning has broken, like the first morning
Blackbird has spoken, like the first bird
Praise for the singing, praise for the morning
Praise for them springing fresh from the world

Sweet the rain’s new fall, sunlit from heaven
Like the first dewfall, on the first grass
Praise for the sweetness of the wet garden
Sprung in completeness where his feet pass

Mine is the sunlight, mine is the morning
Born of the one light, eden saw play
Praise with elation, praise every morning
God’s recreation of the new day

 

Ultimate Destiny

Tree studded forests beckoned us enticingly
Upright stalwarts pointing upwards thoughtfully
Dozing cozy in sleeping bags in forest clearing
My eyes beheld inky midnight skies unfolding
Stars huddled in colonies or self starters, shining
Winking bright and naughty, saucily twinkling
I wondered at this great vastness calmly stretching
The miracle of the master artist constantly etching

Numerous constellations and galaxies, drawing
Breathing life in miniscule to the greatest being
All with a purpose in this great scheme of existing
Caring nurturing dispensing justice to all, protecting
Things in true perspective had me realizing, wondering
I was a mere speck in this mammoth tree of life flowering
What is the great plan and purpose of all creatures living?
Journey it is, a progression with attrition and surviving
Elevating into the higher echelons of the food chain
Is this my only goal or is there another spiritual gain
Improving, improvising constructively progressing surviving
Inexorably moving towards the ultimate goal of achieving
The one grand prize we all are created for in the first place
Oneness with the One who sent us forth to purify with grace
Man’s ultimate destiny is to become one with the Divine Power which governs and sustains the creation and its creatures.-Alfred A. Montapert American Author
It’s not what’s happening to you now or what has happened in your past that determines who you become. Rather, it’s your decisions about what to focus on, what things mean to you, and what you’re going to do about them that will determine your ultimate destiny.
Anthony Robbins 1960-, US Author, Speaker, Peak Performance Expert / Consultant

The purpose of life is a life of purpose. -Robert Byrne , American, Celebrity Quotes
The main purpose of life is to live rightly, think rightly, act rightly. The soul must languish when we give all our thought to the body.- Mohandas Gandhi ,Indian, Leader
The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life off our souls.-Pablo Picasso
Strange is our situation here upon earth. Each of us comes for a short visit, not knowing why, yet sometimes seeming to divine a purpose. From the standpoint of daily life, however, there is one thing we do know that man is here for the sake of other men.
Albert Einstein

The purpose of life is not to be happy. It is to be useful, to be honorable, to be compassionate, to have it make some difference that you have lived and lived well.
Ralph Waldo Emerson

Our minds are finite, and yet even in these circumstances of finitude we are surrounded by possibilities that are infinite, and the purpose of life is to grasp as much as we can out of that infinitude. -       Alfred North Whitehead English, Mathematician Quotes
Pure Spirit, one hundred degrees proof — that’s a drink that only the most hardened contemplation-guzzlers indulge in. Bodhisattvas dilute their Nirvana with equal parts of love and work. -Aldous Huxley 1894-1963, British Author
You ask: what is the meaning or purpose of life? I can only answer with another question: do you think we are wise enough to read God’s mind?- Freeman Dyson ,US Physicist
Our actions throughout the day seek to imitate nature by having a purpose. Kindness is like the rising of the sun that sheds new light on matters and compassion is like the rain that washes a way the old and nurtures new life. -Michael Heninger Social Services

Relationships

Some give joy, some sadness
Some give love, some hatred
Some give affection, some disdain
Some infect, some shun
Some bind, some separate
Some nurture, some rupture
Some heal, some wound
Some enchant, some disenchant
Some attract, some distract
Some make fearless, some fearful
Some calm, some anger
Some give joie de vivre, some apathy
Some give fighting spirit, some resignation
Some give faith, some jealousy
Some give relief, some stress
Some give pleasure, some pain
Some excite, some leave cold
Some cool, some burn
Some give shivers, some sear
Some grow, some wither
Some progress, some stagnate
Some magnetize, some recoil,
Some invite, some resist
Some mesmerize, some repel
Some awaken, some hypnotize
Some accept, some agonize
Some adore, some bore
Some negotiate, some hedge
Some please, some jar
Some give, some receive
Some fly, some dive
Some elevate, some denigrate
Some encourage, some discourage
Some are light, some heavy
Some are real, some pseudo
Some are authentic, some flaky
Some are solid, some shaky
Some measure up, some disappoint
Life in sum total is an intricate cobweb
Of complex simple human relationships


 

Forgiveness is the oil of relationships.–Josh Mcdowell

 

Understand that you, yourself, are no more than the composite picture of all your thoughts and actions.  In your relationships with others, remember the basic and critically important rule: If you want to be  loved, be lovable. If you want respect, set a respectable example!
Denis Waitley 1933-, American Author, Speaker, Trainer, Peak Performance Expert

 

When you’re in a relationship, you’re always surrounded by a ring of circumstances…
joined together  by a wedding ring, or in a boxing ring.
Bob Seger American Musician, Singer

 

The glue that holds all relationships together — including the relationship
between the leader and the led is trust, and trust is based on integrity.
Brian Tracy American Trainer, Speaker, Author, Businessman

 

Relationships are like a dance, with visible energy racing back and forth
between partners. Some relationships are the slow, dark dance of death.
Colette Dowling 

It is the things in common that make relationships enjoyable,
but it is the little  differences that make them interesting.
Todd Ruthman

 

The quality of your life is the quality of your relationships.
Anthony Robbins,1960, American Author, Speaker, Peak Performance Expert / Consultant

 

When the body sinks into death, the essence of man is revealed. Man is a knot, a web, a mesh  into which relationships are tied. Only those relationships matter. The body is an old crock  that nobody will miss. I have never known a man to think of himself when dying. Never. -Antoine De Saint-Exupery, 1900-1944, French Aviator, Writer

 

The most important ingredient we put into any relationship is not what we say or what we do,  but what we are. And if our words and our actions come from superficial human relations techniques  (the Personality Ethic) rather than from our own inner core (the Character Ethic), others will sense  that duplicity. We simply won’t be able to create and sustain the foundation necessary for effective  interdependence.Lose/Win people bury a lot of feelings. And unexpressed feelings come forth later in  uglier ways. Psychosomatic illnesses often are the reincarnation of cumulative resentment, deep
 disappointment and disillusionment repressed by the Lose/Win mentality. Disproportionate rage or anger,  overreaction to minor provocation, and cynicism are other embodiments of suppressed emotion. People  who are constantly repressing, not transcending feelings toward a higher meaning find that it affects  the quality of their relationships with others.
Stephen R. Covey ,American Speaker, Trainer, Author of ”The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”

 

Today we are faced with the preeminent fact that, if civilization is to survive, we must cultivate the science of human relationships… the ability of all peoples, of all kinds, to live together,in the same world, at peace.
Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1882-1945, Thirty-second President of the USA

 

Some of the biggest challenges in relationships come from the fact that most people enter a relationship in order to get something: they’re trying to find someone who’s going to make them feel good. In reality, the only way a relationship will last is if you see your relationship as a place that you go to give, and not a place that you go to take.
Anthony Robbins, 1960-, American Author, Speaker, Peak Performance Expert / Consultant

 

The ultimate test of a relationship is to disagree but to hold hands.- Alexandria Penney

We are never more discontented with others than when we are discontented with ourselves. -  Henri Frederic Amiel  1821-1881, Swiss Philosopher, Poet, Critic

 

A relationship, I think, is like a shark, you know? It has to constantly move forward or it dies.  And I think what we got on our hands is a dead shark.
Woody Allen 1935-, American Director, Screenwriter, Actor, Comedian

 

As a result of trying to solve the big problems we face in life, many of us end up sacrificing individual  relationships by doing things that we may consider as being small or insignificant at the time. This reminds  us of the George and Gracie routine where George asks Gracie, How do you cook a pot roast? She replied,
 I put both a big pot roast and a small pot roast in the oven. When the small one is burnt, the big one is  done just right! - Source Unknown     
 

 

It is explained that all relationships require a little give and take. This is untrue.
 Any partnership demands that we give and give and give and at the last, as we flop into
 our graves exhausted, we are told that we didn’t give enough.
Quentin Crisp  English, Writer Quotes

In human relationships, kindness and lies are worth a thousand truths.
Graham Greene British, Journalist Quotes

PS: having gone through the whole gamut in my relationships, I tried to pin them by penning them and above is the outcome :)  (what kind of relationships do you have ?)

Time Warp

Hastily walking running jogging
Trigger triggers hurtling funneling
Down vortex of my life’s tunnel

Few patches of faded negatives slide
Trinkets n milk teeth gleaming glide
Umpteen tales princes and magic rides

Surface, thrilling rollercoaster
Whizzing, joyous cracker rockets
Forgotten pals in memory’s time pocket

Excitedly curiously lifting the veil of tarp
From times past I catch a glimpse of a harp
Buddies, old vinyls, armchair in time warp

Old ditties reverberate in head soothing
Friends all same stationary, me drifting
Navigating bravely twists n turns tasting

They say rolling stone gathers no hay
Yet tasting cup of life self, happen what may
Is by far better, defying, denying destiny its own way

Time warp made me realize
I envied none as I surmised
I was richer living life king size

No movement can afford to be caught in a time warp and
exist in a state of suspended animation.
Theodore Bikel
Austrian, Actor Quotes

The timelessness of a concept has to be woven into the
 running warp of dying time, vertical power has to be
wedded to the horizontal earth.
Ella Maillart
Swiss, Writer Quotes
If someone is making a judgment when they don’t have
firsthand experience, it’s intolerant. How can you make
a judgment on something you don’t know about?
Beck American, Musician Quotes

Character cannot be developed in ease and quiet. Only through experiences
 of trial and suffering can the soul be strengthened, vision cleared,
 ambition inspired and success achieved.
Helen Keller
American, Author Quotes

In the business world, everyone is paid in two coins:
cash and experience. Take the experience first;
the cash will come later.
Harold S. Geneen, 1910-, American Accountant, Industrialist, CEO, ITT

There are those who think they can play you like a fiddle.
I never tell them they are bad musicians, I just pluck their strings!
Carl Stoynoff, poet/philosopher

Sandcastles

Childhood and sandcastle are akin with a short life span
Both to be relished fully as time and tide wait for no man


Teens come upon us suddenly making us spurt and sprout
Sandcastles too get better defined in these hands no doubt


Youth comes along merrily and emotions take front seat
Exploration n awareness bring love, quickening heartbeat   


dreams dreamed, sandcastles built
enjoyed living without any guilt


High on cloud nine, in gold palace fine
entwined by loving arms, blissful, divine


Throes of exquisite first raptures
brief glowing fireflies captured


embedded treasure trove of cherished memories
gleaming sun catchers of tender love’s trophies


open sesame gained easily alibaba treasures
all in palms of hand without tough measures


four hands touched created dreamy castle in sand
promising eternal love beneath blue sky and land


the ocean heard and laughed at this innocence
shaking in mirth sending riptides as hindrance


love nest of sandcastle gulped in many a stride
telltale signs remained not, on beach, woe betide


lost grandeur of what once had been
handful of promises with lovely sheen


warming and fanning eternal love flames
at the hearth of sandcastle’s fireplace


ensconced lovingly in mansion built on sandy stretch
passing meteor briefly held, joyful catch, unlatched

 

 


“A hero is one who digs the moat while you build your sand castle.” By Sylphia, from internet

Hekyll And jekyll

Hekyll And Jekyll
Two faced
We all are

One for self
One for them
One acquiescing
One denying
One watching
One playing
One laidback
One proactive
One judgmental
One easygoing
One frivolous
One serious
One god fearing
One daredevil
One pathetic
One brave
One penitent
One incorrigible
One biting the bullet
One cringing
One shameful
One shameless
One witness
One witnessing

We are all one or the
Other sometime
For sure if not all the
Time!!!!
The essence of all jokes, of all comedy, seems to be an honest or
 well intended halfness; a non performance of that which is
pretended to be performed, at the same time that one is giving
loud pledges of performance. The balking of the intellect,
 is comedy and it announces itself in the pleasant spasms we call laughter.    
Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803 - 1882)

It’s silly to go on pretending that under the skin we are all brothers.
 The truth is more likely that under the skin we are all cannibals
 assassins, traitors, liars, hypocrites, poltroons.   
Henry Miller (1891 - 1980)

The mind can assert anything and pretend it has proved it.
 My beliefs I test on my body, on my intuitional consciousness,
 and when I get a response there, then I accept.    
D. H. Lawrence (1885 - 1930)
 
In our society those who are in reality superior in intelligence
can be accepted by their fellows only if they pretend they are not.    
Marya Mannes

To know that you do not know is the best.
To pretend to know when you do not know is a disease.   
Lao-tzu (604 BC - 531 BC), The Way of Lao-tzu

A flatterer is a friend who is your inferior, or pretends to be so.    
Aristotle (384 BC - 322 BC)

I am an agnostic; I do not pretend to know what many ignorant men are sure of.    
Clarence Darrow (1857 - 1938)

The greatest way to live with honor in this world is to be what we pretend to be.   
Socrates (469 BC - 399 BC)
 
Popularity comes from allowing yourself to be bored by people while pretending to enjoy it.   
Karol Newlin
 
Never pretend to a love which you do not actually feel, for love is not ours to command.   
Alan Watts

We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful what we pretend to be.    
Kurt Vonnegut (1922 - 2007), Mother Night

Most people have seen worse things in private than they pretend to be shocked at in public.   
Edgar Watson Howe (1853 - 1937)

You can pretend to be serious; you can’t pretend to be witty.   
Sacha Guitry (1885 - 1957)
 
If there is one thing worse than being an ugly duckling in a house of swans,
 it’s having the swans pretend there’s no difference.
Teena Booth, Falling From Fire

Towers Of Silence

(”Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony is the most sublime noise
 that has ever penetrated into the ear of man.”)
E. M. Forster, Howard’s End, 1910

Towers Of Silence

 

Cacophony all over
Has me gasping for air
Noisy din everywhere
Soothing solace nowhere
Running for cover hither and thither
Sans relieving respite, teetering tottering
Gasping pathetically in throes of despair

Every pore in body beseeching succor
Onslaught of high decibels beating galore
My soul cringing, crying no more no more
Begging for salve of peace from noisy gore
Stuffing ears, saving drums is need of hour
Recalling times of pin drop silences of yore

Calmly I collect and curl self, escaping at once
Internally, seeking refuge in the towers of silence
Tranquil, rejuvenating, engaging moments of penance
Reliving olden golden times replete with substance
Living was real not virtual n life was in perfect balance
Nature, relationships, country were held in reverence
Sanctity of boundaries, freedom had real credence

The towers of silence reverberate with a life force
A soundless rhythmic throbbing, vibrating resource
Warming cockles of heart, resuscitating perforce
Curing compulsively young old hurting workhorse
Suffusing radiance, soothing calming great resource
The towers of silence, imparting mute discourse
Rejuvenating sanctuary, away from life’s frenetic racecourse

 

We need to find God, and he cannot be found in noise and restlessness. God is the friend of silence. See how nature — trees, flowers, grass — grows in silence; see the stars, the moon and the sun, how they move in silence. We need silence to be able to touch souls.
Mother Teresa 1910-1997, Albanian-born Roman Catholic Missionary

Not every truth is the better for showing its face undisguised; and often silence is the wisest thing for a man to heed.
Pindar Greek, Poet Quotes

 I think television has betrayed the meaning of democratic speech, adding visual chaos to the confusion of voices. What role does silence have in all this noise?
Federico Fellini Italian, Director Quotes

  The questions worth asking, in other words, come not from other people but from nature, and are for the most part delicate things easily drowned out by the noise of everyday life.
Robert B. Laughlin American, Physicist Quotes

Silence is as deep as eternity, speech a shallow as time.
Silence is more eloquent than words.
Thomas Carlyle ,Scottish, Philosopher Quotes

One of the best things about paintings is their silence - which prompts reflection and random reverie.
Mark Stevens Author Nationalities, Actor Quotes

One of my all time fav.songs  by Simon And Garfunkel
 
 The Sound Of Silence

Hello darkness, my old friend,
Ive come to talk with you again,
Because a vision softly creeping,
Left its seeds while I was sleeping,
And the vision that was planted in my brain
Still remains
Within the sound of silence.

In restless dreams I walked alone
Narrow streets of cobblestone,
neath the halo of a street lamp,
I turned my collar to the cold and damp
When my eyes were stabbed by the flash of
A neon light
That split the night
And touched the sound of silence.

And in the naked light I saw
Ten thousand people, maybe more.
People talking without speaking,
People hearing without listening,
People writing songs that voices never share
And no one dared
Disturb the sound of silence.

Fools said i,you do not know
Silence like a cancer grows.
Hear my words that I might teach you,
Take my arms that I might reach you.
But my words like silent raindrops fell,
And echoed
In the wells of silence

And the people bowed and prayed
To the neon God they made.
And the sign flashed out its warning,
In the words that it was forming.
And the signs said, the words of the prophets
Are written on the subway walls
And tenement halls.
And whisperd in the sounds of silence.

Kindred Spirits

(on two playful puppies)

Two sweet cuddly balls of fur
Wagging tails, like malleable rubber
 
Playfully fencing, prancing feinting
Dancing tiny steps, selves balancing

Sibling are they, born of the same mother
Having same genetic makeup, minds other

No two living creatures have similar minds
Only same likes and dislikes that them binds

Thus we often look for our doppelgangers
Kindred spirits making living that matters

Virtually or in reality we are all on missions
To find folks having same speak and visions

Doubled is our pleasure if we find such a being
Co-existing in tandem, making life worth living

 

I found that it wasn’t so oddball to like music and poetry and visual arts, they’re kindred spirits.
J. Carter Brown
Author Nationalities, Athlete Quotes

 
I sometimes read in a gossip column that I was at a party when I was in Europe at the time.
 It sometimes feels I’ve got a Doppelganger somewhere.
Candace Bushnell
American, Writer Quotes

 

 

 

Making Memories (Family Album)

First sighting
instant
Déjà vu
Transmigration
Osmosis
Merging
Making memories

 1,2,3,4..

Tough two knitting needles
Strong, upright, tensile, resilient

Yarns of love and trust hold tight
 The skeins of two colorful personas
 

Multi-hued crisscrossing mingling
Kaleidoscope like forming patterns

Intricate and unique pleasuring both
The onlookers and performers alike

Yet, unalike, as  involvements  are unalike
Betwixt memory makers n memory shakers

The woof and wharf of two lives’  fabrics
Takes on a unique blended designer beauty

Skilled cohabitation and masterful dance
In step, in sync, gracefully bending, pirouetting

Twirling,  nuzzling,  guzzling,  feeding
Merging, submerging, panicking, smiling

Living, loving, flying, jiving, diving, divining
Singing, winging, zinging, singeing, searing

Creating a very personal private memory bank
Enriched with coins of life well earned together

Spending from it lovingly, in bits and bytes
Storing in memory chips, in print and virtually

For progeny to enjoy and cherish in later life
As memory makers waltz  into horizon, for posterity

I cannot say good-bye to those whom I have grown to love,
 for the memories we have made will last a lifetime and never know a good-bye
Anonymous

 The difference between false memories and true ones is the same as for jewels:
 it is always the false ones that look the most real, the most brilliant.
Salvador Dali
Spanish, Artist Quotes

The one thing I need to leave behind is good memories.
Michael Landon
American, Actor Quotes

A life-long blessing for children is to fill them with warm memories of
 times together. Happy memories become treasures in the heart to pull
 out on the tough days of adulthood
Charlotte Davis Kasl
Author Nationalities, Politician Quotes

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