Being in the know

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Sometimes,

we frame questions 

for answers we already know.

Sometimes,

we have all answers

for questions we don't know.

Sometimes,

we draw a blank

for questions & answers we know.

At all times,

we are always in the know.

But, we wait for a calling

for rest of the world to know.

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© Balaji Palanidurai

This poem is inspired by a facebook post by a good friend in which he had shared his concern with state of the world amidst COVID 19 Lockdown. The post ended with "More n more questions.....??!! Looks like its better these questions go unanswered forever..."

I started responding to his post and ended up writing this poem!

The beautiful lady in the picture is my wife who was enjoying the summer rains from our balcony, lost in her thoughts. It made a perfect illustration for this poem! 

Success

"What does 'success' mean to you?"
Asked a good friend
I said, "It's my ability to let go ...
and harness happiness in the end"

Ability, to let go of inhibition, fear and concern
when comes my turn
And harness appreciation, courage and relief
when I return

Ability, to let go of negativity, ego and blame
when I lose
And harness positivity, pride and fame
when I choose

Ability, to let go of craving, lust and anger
when provoked
And harness spurning, aversion and calmness
when desired

She quipped, "when do you know, in life,
you have succeeded?"
I chipped " I just know it from experience, which
I can feel when needed"

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©Balaji Palanidurai

One peaceful Sunday afternoon I was relaxing and social browsing and came across a post on facebook. It was from a good friend on mine who was casual researching what success means to different people. Coincidentally, I was having a brilliant few weeks at work - from winning new projects to team dinners to receiving gratitude for the individual coaching sessions with my team.

So, instead of the usual "like" action on facebook, I thought of doing something different and penned this poem as my response. I surprised myself by composing the full poem in half hour in one sitting! I am sure this is one poem I might keep coming back to and for self motivation!