Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Still Alive...

Hello People...,

It's been a long time since I seriously sat down and wrote a poem. I think the last one that I seriously wrote was titled "Would" and i guess i wrote it last year on the 29th of July. Well anyways, this one's a sequel of sorts on of my previous poems titled "Alive". So just to refresh your memory, or in case you haven't read "Alive", I am attaching "Alive" before you get to read "Still Alive".


Alive

There is a story, my friends would tell,
Of how high I was, and how hard I fell,
A story about success despite disaster,
Of a slave destined to be his own master.
There was a fight which had once come my way,
Arrogance by my side, I made the choice to stay,
Outnumbered, I lost the battle, but not my pride,
My friends reassured that I fought the good fight.

... And then they whispered to me...
Look... Here... You're alive,
You've got to take this fall in your stride,
Today you can't crawl,
But tomorrow you will walk, run and Fly.

There I lay, Battered and bruised,
No words of courage, or abuse,
Then I felt it, Like a Midas touch,
A few people waiting for me to get up,
The rest had seen me take the tumble,
Walked away, thinking, I've been humbled.
Just because I lost, doesn't mean I'll yield,
They were still there, when I stepped off the field.

... And then I heard the unsaid words...
Look... Here... You're alive,
The way you fought, fills us with pride,
Today you can't walk,
But tomorrow you will run and Fly.

Invincible are the enemies you can no longer hurt,
And it's better to let go, like a worn out shirt.
Then I stepped onto another battleground,
My defeat was famous, and challengers abound,
And I fought them all, didn't hold back,
Like me everyone was bruised, blue and black
As I stepped off, some faces were missing,
There were new ones there, like a blessing,

... And to the departed ones I said...
Look... Here... I am alive,
What you gave me, can't be priced,
Today I can't run,
But tomorrow I am going to Fly.

From all my battles, a lot I had learnt,
No longer did revenge, hopelessly burn,
I came across many, so called the best,
They failed time and again, at my test,
The lesson they learnt, was for all to see,
They were the best, till they came across me,
And now I shall, spread my wings to fly,
To join the flock, up there in the sky,

... And together we all will sing...
Look... Here... We're alive,
We stood by each other, and through time,
Today if we fall,
Tomorrow we shall crawl, walk, run and Fly.


Still Alive

There are some stories that never get old,
Lying deep in our memories, waiting to be told,
Stories about the hour, before the dawn,
About the near death, of a dream reborn,
I once fought a battle, till the last one was down,
Victorious against odds, I let my guard down,
Lost all my trophies while I was basking in glory,
A surprise attack, was the end of that story,

They left me for dead, under the open sky,
In the pool of blood, and waterfall of tears,
With all hope lost, and facing my fears,
A voice within still refused to cry,
Said, "Not yet, not while you're still alive".

In a new country, and a new town,
Wishing no one would pick on a man who was down,
Broken and battered in every sense,
I picked up the pieces, and my friends,
I tried to rebuild, all that was lost,
Trying hard to regain, no matter the cost,
Fending of the people that came to scavenge,
And the enemies, hell bent on revenge,

And again I fell, and again I strived,
Strived to sit up, where I once stood tall,
Though every inch of me was ready to fall,
I told every sinew in me that was ready to die,
"Come on, not yet, I am still alive"

The relentless attacks came one after the other,
And the yellow sun, turned ruby in colour,
I told my friends to stay behind and wait,
To wait for me, while I opened the floodgates,
In came the flood of my sweat, blood, and tears,
And also a trickle of hope, and drop of full of fears,
This was a time of survival, redemption, and resurrection,
An eon of errors made and their correction,

The flood swept away my feathers, but I survived,
The flood subsided and I came ashore,
A new kingdom stood, grander than the one before,
In the midst of the kingdom, a castle touched the sky,
My friends looked at the king, who was still alive,

Now, it matters not, how many times I fall,
Or if the soaring phoenix, is forced to crawl,
For I have and I will, refuse to bow down to fate,
And if I can't walk, I'll crawl out that gate,
And once again teach myself, to how to walk,
And to learn to run, while fate still gawks,
It shall gawk to see me rise from ashes my own,
And fly higher, than I had ever flown,

To all the dream stealers; who'd left me to die,
Those who left me for the vultures; stand up and see,
I am more than what you thought I could ever be,
My kingdom is my answer to your prejudice and lies,
Oh, and guess what, I am still alive.

3 comments:

  1. This is great man! Zen Pencils brought me here ;)...
    I specially liked the "Alive" poem, it made me remember a set Almafuerte's poem. I don't know if you can read spanish but if you can i would recommend reading it (http://www.lecturayescritura.com.ar/almafuerte.htm).

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  2. Thanks Guido... I do not speak Espanol... but I will try and read this one... on a side note, my inspiration was Invictus :-)

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  3. I am glad i stumbled upon your blog. it's touching and inspiring. I am standing at a point in life where i do fear falling down but i am sure when i stand up again i'll still be alive. "And if i cant walk i'll crawl to the gate". I loved both your poems. You have inspired me. You are blessed with a poetic insight.Keep writing man. God bless you

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