The Currency of Time

So much of time has drifted down the stream,

That "sorry" and "thank you" are empty now;

We wake from what was once a living dream,

And ask no pardon, nor will make a bow.

No one remains to listen or to speak,

The doors are closed against the quiet plea;

Though true the love we once were bold to seek,

It drowned beneath a vast, indifferent sea.

The days are priceless, bought with breath and bone,

Yet feelings stand like trifles in the dust;

We walk the heavy miles of earth alone,

Where time has eaten every ancient trust.

The Movie of Our Days

When looking back, the tears and laughter blend,

The heavy depressions and the silent sighs,

The love we held so close unto the end,

All lose their sharp and agonizing cries.

The ones we loved, the ones we fought and burned,

Now look like simple mortals, pure and kind;

We wonder how the pages might have turned

If we had left no shadow left behind.

Would all their joys have doubled, unconstrained,

If I had never crossed their shifting track?

It matters not what losses have remained,

Or what the silent years can render back.

Despite the weight, the trouble, and the strife,

I hold the truth: I lived a brilliant life.

The Dream Where I Find You

Yes, it is only a dream,

Where I hold you close and tight;

A little world of happiness,
Where everything feels right.

It is the only place I see you,
The only place you stay;
So every night I wait for sleep,
To meet you there again someday.

Just one moment of that bliss,
One embrace I long to feel;
A dream may never become real,
Yet somehow it makes me heal.

The Heart Remains a Child

Though time may wear and weary wisdom fade,

This foolish heart refuses to grow old;

It stumbles through the mess of errors made,

And hopes for grace before the tale is told.

I lose my way and let the hours depart,

Floating alone upon a misty stream,

Where gentle winds console a stubborn heart,

And brush my cheek to keep alive the dream.

They kiss my face and whisper through the air:

"No matter what the passing years may cost,

The child remains forever beating there,

Whose pure and simple wonder is not lost."

Such a Fate

 I know you will not come, yet still I call,

And wish to walk beside you through the years;

Though well I know this dream will never fall

Into my hands, to dry these foolish tears.

Such fortune was not written in the stars,

No matter how I plead or how I pray;

We bleed against our own invisible bars,

And watch the one we long for slip away.

Damn with this fate that keeps our worlds apart,

And damn this quiet hope that won't give in

It breaks the heavy, unrelenting heart,

Yet keeps me wishing where I should have been.

Bas Woh Nahi Aaya

Hazaron log mehfil mein naye andaz se aaye,

Har ek chehre pe raunaq thi, naye aawaz se aaye.

Bahaar aayi, faslein badli, naye mausam bhi sab laut ke aaye,

Magar jis ek ki khwahish thi, bas woh nahi aaya.

Sitaron ne bhi chupke se gagan mein raqs theek kiya,

Hawa ne aake kano mein koi afsana theek kiya.

Zamane bhar ki khushiyan dar pe dastak dene baithi hain,

Har ek mehman ne aakar hamein yeh yaad dilaya hai:

Ki raste dekh kar aankhon ke raste bujh gaye sare,

Charag-e-dil jalaye jo, woh parwana nahi aaya.

Sabhi aye, yeh duniya aayi, yeh saara aalam aaya hai,

Magar is bheed mein tanha khada jo tha, woh nahi aaya.

Ishq Is Rocking

 Ishq karo toh dil se karo,

Thoda sa pagalpan bhi bharo;

Dil do toh khul ke do,
Har pal ko jee ke jiyo.

Pyaar mein thodi masti ho,
Har dhadkan mein ek hasti ho;
Gir jao toh hans ke uthna,
Ruk jao toh phir se chalna.

Ishq ho toh duniya rangeen,
Har lamha lage haseen;
Dil bole, “Bas jeete raho!”
Aur zindagi kahe—It’s rocking!