the last sin   pale ashen sky a bleary eye clouds of recurring screams... i am a zoo   an octopus leviathan tentacles into an ocean of unformed emotions... syphilis and love     syphilitic pall stifles the clear blue i contort...   shell and pearl   amidst highs and lows in life's ocean flows a shell peony-mouthed...   i am an unmarried mother     fed on stings of barbed milk morality my child-plankton...   the lovers   cell upon cell bridge of their union hung on the pillars... rebirth   ogre of age and time cavil at a warm picture... the young today   innocence thaws at the altar of ambition...		Battle of the Cells She is 67 and looks fragile Lying on her bed in the hospital With a needle pumping Painkillers in her…dripdropdrip Watch out for the air bubble Nurses don’t care, business as usual He plants a bouquet of roses On the window sill Overlooking her bed And a kiss on her temple Says a silent prayer Wishful thinking A debilitating surgery Has dented her spirit this time  He tries to cheer her up And she tries to smile valiantly Behind frayed nerves She fought cancer Eight years back And she fought well Uncomplaining and with faith With morning and evening walks Near Ganges in pristine Kankhal The abode of Daksh And at his new home in the Millennium City In her sport shoes With long white laces After the walk she would sit In the garden with Simba The German Shepherd Nuzzling at her feet It’s a beautiful life, she said  Ma you are beautiful and strong And will emerge triumphant In the battle of the cells This time too 8 July 2007 Poetry Home