Face Value

Wherever I see

in this mad melee, 

I see face over a face;

like a lace wrapped over 

the rough mace.

Bright blue and pink to be seen,

Steely shades of grey within.

Hues of innocence all over;

Deception comes packed in a white cover.

They claimed truth, not lies,

Alas! opaque glasses covered the crafty eyes.

I thought friends came for a steal,

But forgot life for most

is no more than a deal.

That trust is rare among men and women,

promises are made to be broken.

For those who proclaimed themselves as friends,

Means meant much less to them than ends.

Naïve, was I, who could see the real face

that it is all about winning when life is a race.

The Nude Rascals

As the morning,

fresh with its dewdrops,

and twitter of birds,

awakens man to another day,

hundreds  die on the roads.

As we rub our eyes,

and awake to a life

full of dreams and hope;

Hundreds sit dazed

with their eyes wide open to reality.

As we enjoy the extravaganza

of food and delicacies,

relishing our taste buds;

Millions of children die,

die out of pain and hunger.

As we shed clothes

to shed our inhibition;

Celebrate nudity,

as a sign of modernisation,

Look down upon ‘them’ as ‘nude rascals’.

As I write these lines

in the cool confines of my room,

slums are being burnt down,

modesty is being outraged;

hundreds die a blistering death.

***