BALLAD OF A BLIZZARD

'Twas the middle of December,
On the eve' before Christmas
Did we hear a whinny that louder
Did grow, as we approached the barn door.

Inside on the floor, 'pon the hay and moss
Lay a tiny thing, the most beautiful horse.
"Blizzard, " we chose to call him -
A name I chose upon a whim.

Blizzard grew up to be tall 'n' strong
Very much unlike the storm
In the middle of which he was born.
Blizzard was something, he was fed on corn.

As a young 'un, he raced about
My Father's fields and about
A track as an old 'un;
And the Media said, "As quick as him, there is n'ne."

Not his, but 'twas the Jockey's ego that grew,
For he was proud to race a horse that flew.
We didn't worry as he was in good hands,
But dare we leave that to chance?

And as chance had it, on the big race
Day, the Jockey drove Blizzard hard
And the poor horse - he fell on his face.
Soon after, we received many a card...

Blizzard, my favourite, beloved horse -
He'd broken his neck as he fell on the course.
Unable to rise, so my Father, the best,
Suspected; the horse was put to rest.

Soon after, Blizzard was buried where he was born,
There in the barn, among the fields of corn.
And every blizzard, we remember him by
With a smile and a tear in the eye.

This was the ballad of Blizzard the horse
A good being, unlike the prickly gorse.
Every great being has a quick end -
The same with Blizzard, my good friend.

A GHOST STORY

As I crossed Lemures' Lane,
A distant clock told me 'twas midnight.
I tried to control my heart, in vain,
For it jumped at every sound in fright.

Soon I came upon the graveyard,
I sensed something move .
Something fluttered past my head,
An owl, it gave a 'Coo!'

I was frightened,my heart was jumping
Upon my chest, I heard its thumping.
The graveyard was silent
My head told me, "Something is imminent."

I heard footsteps some way behind me
Relieved, I stopped and turned to see
A boy of sixteen, jolly as trout
Come to a halt beside me.

Said I to him, "Friend, I have been told
ghosts walk this ground, ain't it true?" and
Said he with a smile, "Have you any doubt?"

THE OTHER HALF OF ME

Somewhere far, far away,

In a land to me unknown:

A land that borders the Ocean

To the East, and the Mountain

To the West, lives the other half of me.

And I - I looked in a mirror,

Hoping for at least a glimpse.

Try as I may, I was unsuccessful

And thus, in my mind did arise

The thought: "Maybe this is one of my whims."

Dejected I sat down, and began to cry

When suddenly my heart -

It broke loose and began to fly.

Flabbergasted, for a moment I sat still,

And then ran like the wind upon a hill.

I ran as fast as I could;

My heart just out of reach, always.

The chase took me to places I knew not

Until to the land unknown, but vaguely

Familiar I was brought.

There, my heart led me to a small

Room in a house, no bigger than a hole in a wall.

And lo! I was surprised,

My heart had led me to the thing I prized.

And now, tears of joy flowed like a river

For at last I had found the other half of me.

FOOTPRINTS IN THE SANDS OF TIME

I had reached the end of the road;

I turned around and looked back

And saw, with pleasure and sorrow

The footprints, those various tracks.

As I walked down Memory Lane,

I wished for another chance

Although I knew 'twas in vain.

I wished, with all my heart,

To relive those moments, every part.

I wished to dance and prance

About, for every joyous moment

And I wished for a second chance,

To right the mistaken moments.

As I lay awaiting death,

I watched those memories from afar

Sometimes, with bated breath.

I was weak and I was ill,

All I had, bequeathed in my will.

As I looked back, I realized

The moments I'd erred

Were more, but those I prized.

But alas! all that is past,

For now they remain:

Mere footprints in the sands of time.

EVOLUTION

A hermit crab - thats what I've been all my life.
'Tis the reason for all the strife.
To escape the terrible wounds
Of a small shell, I searched for another
Wandering from mound to mound.
And one day I became a fish,
The kind that tries not to become a dish.
Finally, I thought, I can flash my
True colours to the world.
This evolution will help me break that mould.
But now I regret it -
No matters, I'll carry on with great wit.
I'll flash my colours,
Stop to smell the flowers.
And through all the thick
And the thin, never (though it may arise) wish:
That I'd soon become a part of that tasty dish!

FACES

Son, brother, student, friend:
These faces in me do reside.
For every role (many have no end)
I have one face always, by my side.
I am now a clown,
And now I am a cop;
I'll never let you down,
This act will (never) stop.
(Soon afterwards)
But now I am tried -
It is finally time,
After the amount I have lied
To put an end to this mime.
And thus, without many poses
This chapter finally closes.