___
Old Friend
Where have you been
Old friend?
Long time, no see.
Where have you been
Wandering around all this time?
Did you clasp the proverbial
Gold at rainbow’s end?
Did you find what
You were looking for?
Are you happy or sad?
Do you feel lost?
What do you plan on
Doing now that you are here?
I see that the wanderlust
In your eyes has not died
Down even with the passage of time.
What can I do for you?
How can I help you?
Let’s celebrate this finite hour
With an alcoholic beverage or two
Just me and you
And forget about our troubles.
Let bygones be bygones
And let’s look to the future
Which is uncertain and opaque
But holds wonder like
A cup that holds water.
Patron
I don’t know about
Where, how or why
You found me
One fine day
A lost and confused soul
Adrift in the sea
But knowing you,
Filled my heart with glee.
I was a work-in-progress
To be sure
Even so, you did not
Show me the door.
Little by little,
I learned the ropes
And how to cope
With failure and loss
Yet, you refused to
Count the cost:
Thanks for all
The help and support
That’s what I
Have to report.
Somewhere Along the Way
Somewhere along the way
We stopped growing
And lost sight of
The plain truth.
Instead, we rushed
Here, there and everywhere
With nervous hands
And restless feet,
Achieving nothing of significance.
After all, we were entangled
In fleeting pleasures:
We were too busy
And could not find
The time to smell
The roses
And gather tulips and daisies
In our palms.
Everything was for sale
And everybody had a price.
Somewhere along the way
We forgot to rebel
Against arcane laws that
Did not make any sense.
Somewhere along the way
We discarded the hippie
And wore a three piece suit
And joined the corporate world.
Somewhere along the way
We turned into an insensitive
And passive beast
And lost our touch
With the experience of eternity.
Somewhere along the way
We fell prey
To conventional wisdom
And peer pressure
And lost sight of our
Questioning minds and inherent wisdom.
Somewhere along the way.
Bio: Dr. Archan Mehta
Archan Mehta has earned a PhD in Management.
Currently, Dr. Mehta is a Consultant and Writer: he is based in India.
Over the years, Dr. Mehta’s works have appeared in several publications, such as American Poetry Anthology, Poets United to Advance the Arts, The Times of India, The Indian Express, Mid-Day, and Onlooker.
In his free time, Dr. Mehta likes to stroll in the outdoors, listen to music, party with close friends, and read.
Please feel free to reach out to the poet at archanm@hotmail.com or through LinkedIn.
Nice