Questions

As my hand moves across the rough paper,

The nib scratches, etching my words, after long,

The stroke of midnight, completing the revolution it started a while ago,

Is it the sign of a new start, or the signal of an end, I wonder,

I just wish for some silence, but nothing gets fulfilled,

The day passes in words, the dead of the night in thoughts,

The rest goes along in the cheers, pushing me back into the race,

Just life; it comes, it follows, and it walks past, all in a hurry,

I can see the lights buzzing around on the asphalt,

Far away in the dark, like ants scurrying for food,

We are quite the same, tiny beings, hungry, greedy and desolate,

I can hear sirens, and my eyes go wide; my heart starts jogging,

Is it a circle of sorts, with the beginning same as the end,

The drop of a pin, the ignition of a matchstick,

The cry of a baby, and the silent wails in the dark,

Actions so small, yet very impactful, like words?

A smirk, a coy laugh, the hint of a smile, as I dot the mark above,

The ink on my skin is drying, the letter sketching making my hand itch,

It ends here, for today, as I stroll into dreamland,

Why is it that we have so many questions, and answers…?

Fires

I walk through the dead night into the flames of tomorrow,

Cringing past with only the weapon of hope in my hands,

It’s a plan, an idea waiting to materialize in form, with time,

The stage is to be set, layered with enthusiasm and energy,

As the emptiness casts a shadow of doubt intermittently,

Two paces forward, and then one back, sometimes it’s all square,

Slow and steady wins the race, but never against the clock,

Its hands faster than imagined, tracing the circle over and over again,

Lifting me to heights, but, only to fall?

A threshold to cling to, a parapet to balance myself on,

It’s a battle of minors, but for a prize so major,

Lined with laughter, interspersed by feuds, and with no sleep,

There are always reasons to push on, this time its coffee,

Mountains to move, new heights to scale,

Momentarily the single thought plaguing the mind,

My heart’s thudding so hard, racing along pleasantly,

I’m afraid of speed breakers, expecting the sound of screeching brakes,

Thankfully unheard, and the sighs echoing, with jubilant celebration,

It all comes together, at last, and so do the eyelids,

As I sink into the depths, with another fire to light, or to douse.