13. A string (4 Parts) (20, 21, 22, 24 Aug 2009)

Part 4
So the golden leaves were put on
And from frumpy jeans
to a show-stopping princess
in silken yellow sequin

You bequeathed new life
to a weary traveler
More than Tinkerbell, simpler than Wu Xiao Long
But the impression left me waiting

We walked through flowers
Treading on my heart
like nymphs across the Perdana lake
And we were again in a moment with shoes and feet
Caught in embarrassed apologies

Part 3
We shopped till we dropped
everything, and you looked incredible
The black dress, the grey pullover
Even when there was sight beyond seeing

I grabbed the belt and the three
pieces of cloth
and you became the sole candidate
for super stardom

But it was the intensity
The hungry look
An anxious word
uttered before a night of turbid rest

Part 2
I kidnapped you
Kept you in a Tunnel of Love
Entrapped in a white steed
But you waited and found respite

We were under stars
Where we always were
and I brought you home
In sweat and smile

Part 1
First it was the seatbelt
Then the motorcycle
And before you could look around
I had combed the pasture and smoothed the tower

It was your birthday
There was darkness everywhere
The only light that shone
Glowed in the desperation of hushed longings

12. Stars that shine without (13th August 2009)

I was hungry
You gave me something to eat
I was thirsty
You gave me something to drink
I was cold and without clothing
You clothed me and gave me warmth
You were in prison
and I came to visit you

Even when things didn’t turn out the way we wanted
When the clouds covered all our expectant excitement
Down on the ground
where you and me were equal
We knew that seeing eye to eye
Was the greatest fulfillment we could give to each other
And making movies would be our secret joy.

11. Short Notice (10th August 2009)

You asked for the moon
I gave you the sun
You asked for flowers
I gave you rain
a few drops late

But your smile beckoned me into confidence
And when I could hold you
I did not want to let go
because your touch rode out
my doubts

10. You draw me deeper (8th July 2009)

We found each other
altogether imperfect, the fires
went between the lips lit with misinformation
and unrealized expectations

But when clarity dawned
You held me
and your medicine has now made me a dependent
that longs for eyes and a love that your lips bring

9. The Maid and the Beggar (30th June)
Once upon a time, in the Kingdom of the Great King, lived a beggar and a maid. One day, the beggar met the maid, and was impressed by the maid’s service to the Great King, and asked her whether she would join him in walking the streets towards the Castle of the Great King. The maid agreed.

Along the way, the Beggar got excited and told the maid. “One day I will be a prince!” he said. “Really?” she asked. “And you will be a princess!” and she smiled. She was used to waiting on others all the time. Those words seemed too good to be true.

As they walked, the maid kept looking at the Beggar, who kept looking along the path, and there were days when he hardly spoke, not even to her. He just kept walking. One day, she could not take it anymore.

“I’m leaving!” she said. “I can’t stand this treatment. What kind of ‘prince’ are you?” Without a further word, she turned and left.

The beggar was silent. What could he do? He was only a beggar, and all he knew was how to beg for Mercy from his Master.

Not long down the road, the beggar stopped and knelt beside the road to pray in his customary fashion. “Thank you Lord, for giving me life and breath and all that is good. All I have is from your hands. So I beg for mercy for a new day. And I pray that you will be merciful to the maid as she travels back.” He opened his eyes and carried on his journey. He was only a beggar, who knew how to beg for Mercy. Perhaps one day when he was more acquainted with royal treatment, he thought, he would be able to act more like a prince.

8. Looking for Medicine (15th June)

Searching down busy dead ends
Your words are laced with fire
I can’t get this tar shirt off me fast enough
Where can I find peace?

I take too long to learn
Too long to calm down
Those blue flames lick up fatty pride
And agonizing reveries refresh me

Just when the pyre overwhelm me
And my impatience leads me nowhere
An ancient idea brings berth
to a stolen moment that redeems the wanderer

7. Stolen Moments (21st May)

As we become strangers
to familiar misconceptions
when all that is cordial
is stripped away

to quiet, and peace
and gentle words
that heal
stolen gestures
leave me breathless
wanting you more

Let us not be afraid
of all that is insecure
and the unknown that robs you

for faith is
the substance of such things
and strength lies in the knowledge of what is known
in spite of deep doubt

6. Everything (17th May)

With one look
You linger in my darkness like everlasting light
Why would I  go anywhere else
When I have a heart with strength beyond my own
and fingers that heal broken crucibles

Reach deeper 
And find my love that only you deserve
Never return it 
do not be afraid
for now you will begin to know everything.

5. Simple man, simple things

Although I may look the Cassanova
Every man has it; I know I will never match him
Not every man can follow through

I have been trying to tell you
Love lives beyond the bluster
It is a daily committment to put you first,
below God; above self

But what happens if I do not even consider self?
I was never a lover since the beginning
Love takes time to grow.

4. Why? (7th May)

You are pushing me to the edge
Of all that I hold dear
You bring me to nothing
And yet, I know the choices I have made
A promise to you, wouldn’t it be a promise to me?

I have set in my heart to stay the Path
To which our destinies are intertwined
If you have agreed, why doubt?
Have faith in me, but have more faith in God.

Even if you choose otherwise, my heart will remain with you
Until it is totally cast asunder 

3. Intoxicated (29th April)

Gentle fingers touch glass
Your eyes are teardrops of love
Your hair like the unseen cords that bind my heart
and your smile the fire of knowing and joy

When will I see you again?

How will I be still
The deadlines are flitting past
unperturbed; while the world burns
I wait for the sound of your voice
each new morning, like men going to work
Completing the day before it begins.

2. Doing an Abraham (28th April)

What happened
To all the bluster, bravado and the crooning eyes
In the noise of fear, trepidation
You looked for me, but I was nowhere
All you got was the cold

My life is worthless now,
Now that I valued it more than yours
When will I ever redeem it back again?

Your laugh
Will bring me back 
From the land of shifting shadows
Of cowardly kings. 

1. Deep Night (21st April)

Deep night
tired eyes bringing your mind to final rest
and work that never sleeps, a clock that never ends
stay by my side for awhile
as the words become companions in your dream
and my voice the only thing
you hear before sleep brings you nearer to morning