From the heart of the poet

Poems from our Batch Boys

Xaviers 70 Batch by Deepak Chibba

A sporty gang they were

Dribbling & feinting big balls- footballs & basketballs,

Driving & hitting small balls hard & far – baseballs & handballs

A few graced the calisthenics of gymnastics

The rest bet on ping pong or,

played the fool in the pool

What a thrill ’twas the cream roll & chilled soda

All in all for twenty five paisa

The gang spread far and wide,

Achievers all, they spoke of their school with pride,

and honored their coaches, teachers & guides

For what they gave to help them fly

Gang of 70

‘Tis time to share the best of your life

Salud Kanpai Cheers !!

द्रव्य by  नरेशजोशी

I am still a young 60 something y Pavan Shorey

I used to walk a kilometer in 10 minutes

Now I do it in fifteen

I get a little breathless, a little tired

But I am still fit like a teen

I am still a young 60 something

I get a muscle pull in my bums

Or a sharp pain in the back

Docs say it is aging

I say I am fit to lift a wheat sack

I am still a young 60 something

I get up from the bed

The whole world reels around me

My friends say Cervical Spondylosis

But I can easily bend over backwards for all to see

I am still a young 60 something

I get up twice at night to pee

My friends say it is Prostate

I have too many fluids at night

Guys, you have this negative trait

I am still a young 60 something

I see a beautiful woman

My heart skips a beat

Where the mind goes, the body doesn’t follow

All fantasies take a retreat

I am an old 60 something

The Benchmark was never the bench…by Ramesh Tandon (with a little help from chatGPT 😜)

In school, there was, is and will be, a unique and discreet subset.

A few rows of Back-Benchers, who were never afraid of a test.

These backbenchers took the longest breaks.

Took the longest to settle down.

Rarely would have done their homework.

Still, from teachers didn’t evince a frown.

They were current on movies & knew great stuff on sports too.

 If our city had secret places to visit, they’d already been there & done that too 😜.

They weren’t good at academics but weren’t bothered about it.

They were good in sports but would not bother others about it.

They were taller and heavier & some had seen more summers than others.

Puberty struck them earlier. One among them was a drummer.

They had magazines which front benchers didn’t.

More glossy and re-readable at that.

There was an air of mischief & a smile that complemented that ☺.

Except for the art class, the ones in our class were great artists too.

They’d draw on the desk,

art mentionable and unmentionable too.

They knew how to fly planes.

Land missiles on teachers and with a poker face,

lie with panache & credence.

Catcalls and comments,

came from them with a regular flow.

Assignments were jointly completed,

later than sooner they would show.

They were a nice lot,

happier than most others I’d say.

More at peace with themselves,

except on the results day.

Sports Day was the day they’d excel,

and make their class and house proud.

Win points and medals,

Be cheered by the crowd.

They had the colours on holi-day.

Their pen wielded ink too.

Their crackers resounded in toilets,

They had the gadgets and games too.

In time we met again,

in social media groups and reunions.

They’ve done as well as those in front rows,

the differences have melted since.

Happy then and happy now,

the backbenchers had a fair deal.

They must’ve slogged in between,

As good or better than front row, I feel.

It generally evens out in life,

whether you were at the front or at the back.

The benchmark was never the bench,

Or where they sat, front or back…

The flavour of Xaviers

The flavour of Xaviers,

The era of Pareira,

The horror of Rebeiro,

The Saturday evening movies,

The papdi chat of Gopal,

The milkshake and buns of the canteen,

The noise and bonhomie of the senior lounge,

The one of its kind handball courts,

The legendary upper and lower fields,

Baseball in that time,

The ‘Mardadi” which we played in the interval,

The kancha experts,

The competition of manjha fighting close to Sankranti,

The elocution competitions and the dramas enacted,

The kites and vultures gracefully hovering above

waiting for the right opportunity,

The exact angle of their approach,

The antics of us all in the Jungle Jim,

The histories of the laboratories, ,

The hard day when we got a card,

The dreaded array of pink or grey,

laughter in the air,

friends beyond compare,

crazy classroom antics,

schoolmates forever,

our bonds we will endeavour

and make strongerday after day

Poem by Basant Khaitan

Wise People Reunion
School is one place from where we learn(t).
Reading is the other place from where we keep learning.
And now, Social-media is the other-other place from where we learn and unlearn!
As we aged in Life, we gained knowledge, developed intelligence and gathered experiences!
Together, this trio evolved patiently into Wisdom and of course – grey hair!
So it’s not ‘Oldies’ but ‘Wise people’ celebrating their 50 years reunion!
Differences between “Intelligence & Wisdom” are profound. Appears philosophical, but in reality practical!
Sharing some, from 20 odd that I have. Welcome to add more to my collection.

1. Intelligence leads to arguments
   : Wisdom leads to settlements
2. Intelligence is power of will
   : Wisdom is power OVER will
3. Intelligence is holding on
   : Wisdom is letting go
4. Intelligence aspires
   : Wisdom inspires
5. Intelligence answers questions
   : Wisdom questions answers
6. Intelligence is being young in body
   : Wisdom is being young in mind
7. An intelligent man understands what is being said
   : A wise man understands what is left unsaid

होली by नरेश जोशी

तन थिरका मन महका है
ढप होली का गूंजा है
मन- अमराई में ,
कुहकी कोयल
तन में
पलाश का दहका जंगल
भीतर झरनों का शोर हुआ है
जब से यौवन का फाल्गुन आया है।

भायी है
सरसों की पीली चितवन
हरजाई,
हरियाली के संग
बदला देह का रंग प्रिय
महका मानो मन -उपवन
पुष्पों के पुंजों ने अपने पास बुलाया है
जब से यौवन का फाल्गुन आया है।

छाया है
रंग मनोरम,अल्हड़ सुघढ़ यौवन पर
भटका है,
मन खेतों की टेढ़ी-मेढ़ी मेंड़ों पर
झीलों की गहराई ने अपने पास बुलाया है
जब से यौवन का फाल्गुन आया है।

दृग ढूँढते ,
गोपी को नटखट बदरंग चेहरों में,
सुनते कर्ण संगीत सुहाना
हंसी कलरव दूर गांव के पोखर में
आओ प्रिय खेले होली हम
लाल गुलाल अबीर के संग
वन बालाओं ने अपने पास बुलाया है
जब से यौवन का फाल्गुन आया है।।

अनन्त कवि by नरेश जोशी

काव्य गाथा मिटती नहीं ,अमिट है आत्मा की तरह
देश भक्ति का स्त्रोत बन
जागृति का भरती है दम
शहीद होते हैं हँसते गाते
कुर्बानी का पहन कफ़न
लिखता है , दो शब्द काफी है
कभी बुझता नहीं, अमिट है आत्मा की तरह।

राष्ट्रीय प्रेम का जन्म दाता
साहस जुटाता जवानों में
मंद दिल जन में भरता
हौसला बुलन्दी का
लिखता है, दो शब्द काफी है
कवि बुझता नहीं ,अमिट है आत्मा की तरह।

विज्ञान लोक में खोजता प्राणी
वैज्ञानिकी कहलाता भौतिकी
अनन्त सागर में विचरता- मानव
कहलाता कवि आध्यात्मिकी
लिखता है दो शब्द ,काफी है
कवि बुझता नहीं, अमिट हैं आत्मा की तरह ।

इतिहास साक्षी है कवि का
लालों का लाल कहलाता
अमर गाथाओं की रचना कर
खुद इतिहास बनाता
लिखता है दो शब्द , काफी है
कवि बुझता नहीं ,अमिट है आत्मा की तरह।

इस प्रलयंकारी भौतिकी युग में
कहीं आस है दिशा की
ग़र कोरे पन्नों पर स्याही है लहू की
लिख देगा कवि लेखनी
इक और नयी जागृति की
लिखता है दो शब्द, काफी है
कवि बुझता नहीं,अमिट है आत्मा की तरह।

कवि बुझता नहीं,बीतता है
मोमबत्ती की तरह
बांटता रोशनी जग में
पिघला कर आत्मा अपनी
लिखता है दो शब्द, काफी है
कवि बुझता नहीं——
अमिट है आत्मा की तरह। ।