Overdraft

I opened a current account

And my hopes started flowing in and out

It refused to yield a dime of interest

And stirred up relentless unrest

They gave me a facility aka overdraft

And entitled me to more than my cut

High on hope I drew a cheque

And off it went to get my favourite cake

All was set

The festoons in place

The candles on tiptoes

The knife prepared for the task ahead

And the clock struck twelve..

The trolley made its victory lap

But the cake was nowhere to be seen

What lay on the floor

Right outside my door

Was an unsolicited mail

Set to blow the wind out of my sail

The cheque it said had been dishonoured

And I stood silent, cornered.

I summoned the dregs of my pride

And headed to my bank, my guide

A savings account would suit me better, they said

My status measured and the statements laid

I picked up my dreams

And deposited them there

To be buried with the frosted cream

That beckoned me from every layer.

The Fall from Grace

Success manifests itself in myriad ways. At times it could just be a radiant smile you conjured up on a loved one’s face and at other times a glittering trophy adorning your shelf. How do you value one over the other? Does making the choice necessarily define who you are? Are people entitled to judge you by and for this choice?  For you got to admit people aren’t just people these days.Society is the new God and it follows in the tradition of the old Gods while framing new laws of its own. It is only by earning the graces of the revered Society can one hope to be truly successful.Otherwise the individual’s success would be infamously perceived to be a rather self-acclaimed affair,isn’t it? 

Suppose for a minute there that you hold the trophy dearer. There is nothing immoral there. But many around you will make you feel as though you made a grave error of judgment. They will go on to remember you for being a materialist. Then again there will be another who would choose the smile over the trophy. While some would laud him for being a good human being, others might call him an underachiever for technically he has not achieved anything tangible. 

This fear of being judged then becomes the primary factor determining our answer to every question asked. In some it is a conscious choice to evade a stigma and in others an unconscious involuntary reflex which prompts them to frame their responses in accordance with what they know is expected of them.

This habit apparently seems to cause no harm. One might go on to the extent of saying that it reflects good sense in dealing with people and situations. However when conditioned in this manner for a long time, this habit makes hypocrites out of us. Filled to the brim with bottled opinions and feelings, the persona suffocates under the marketed interface. Over a period of time the cover starts to peel off.Initially when the seams burst open, the part of the apparel can still be tucked in and hidden from plain view. However soon enough the shrunken, disshelved self bares itself, causing more harm to the image in its bitter avatar than if it would have been known to be phlegmatic from day one. This is perceived as the fall: ‘cheleta/meyta noshto hoe gelo..age erom chilo na jyano’,they would chime in unison. 

So in the modern day scenario, you don’t need to imbibe Satanic values neither to cultivate a taste for Adam’s ignorance to experience the mythical Fall. All you need to do is to try to customise yourself to please people around you and the rest shall ‘fall’ in place.