The Imp-Man

This blog is for the convenience of the friend for whom I wrote this poem. The goat that he is, he doesn’t have the copy I gifted him. The poem was written a few years ago.

As I said in one of my previous blogs, friends are of different kinds. They touch our lives in different ways; what is undeniable though is that they inevitably touch our life.

This goat is one such friend. He’s been not just a friend but a guide and mentor too. He’s the one I can share my deepest problems with. He’s the one who’s helped me walk when I thought I couldn’t even stand. He helped me back on my feet and guided me back on track. He’s managed to make me laugh when all I could do was weep. He’s encouraged me to be the best when all I thought I could do was manage. He’s been my teacher and taught me far beyond books. He has cared and dared to show. He’s made time for me when actually he had none. He’s opened my mind to a whole new perspective to life. He’s given me vision when all I had was sight.

Once again, this one’s for you, you Goat!


The Imp-man

A child at heart
An imp by nature
With behaviour most incorrigible
Knowing not what he’ll do next
Definitely drives me haywire.

With twinkling eyes
And a naughty smile
He pulls my legs no end
Driving me crazy, getting me tizzy
He does with sleight of hand.

Careless chatter
Merry banter
He listens without complaining
His listening ear, his joyful cheer
Is enough to lift me when brooding.

Merry songs
Skylarking stunts
The antics of a rogue
Of all the naughty things he says and does
The snide remarks I abhor!

At times he’s most exasperating
With his mischievous ways
Setting no limit
Keeping no time
In his many escapades.

And though it may seem
Like I’m complaining
It simply isn’t true
For in his crookish, impish ways
I’ve found a friend so true.


- Rukma

What More Can I Ask For

A lot of people come into our lives but there are those few who touch deep within. They come and leave an indelible mark on our life. They are the ones who touch deep within, one way or the other. They are the ones we call friends.

Here's a poem I wrote years ago for my friend Sonali, but the same stands true for all my other friends. Today I re-dedicate the poem to all my dearest friends, the stars in the night sky that is my life.

What More Can I Ask For...

Someone…
To lean on
To listen to your woes
To comfort you, to hold you close
What more can one ask for?

Someone…
To count on when times are tough
To share dreams, hopes, aspirations
Even the wildest ones
What more can one ask for?

Someone…
To correct, to reprimand you
To teach, to guide you
To heal, to nurture you
What more can one ask for?

Someone…
Who loves you the way you are
Despite your follies, your faults, your idiosyncrasies
Accepts you unconditionally
What more can one ask for?

Ti’s but a miracle…
To get without asking
To find without looking
That ‘someone’ we call a friend
So true, so fine, so dear

I don’t remember asking
But God gave you to me
What I did to deserve you,
Well, don’t ask me!
What more can I ask for?

-Rukma

Everyone needs a friend

Everyone needs a friend. Anyone who says he/she doesn’t is lying. I for one can vouch for the important role that friends play in one’s life. I have had friends as far back as I can remember. In fact there are two with whom I have literally grown up with. We were born around the same time and lived across the road from each other. Over the years we didn’t meet as often but whenever we did meet we continued from where we left. This I find most amazing.

Then I had my holiday friends. They came to stay at their granny’s place which happened to be in my neighbourhood. We met only during vacations and of course picked up from where we left at the beginning of each vacation.

Then there were the school friends. The three of us made a strong team and we stood by each other and enjoyed school life. This was followed by my higher secondary school friends. We had lots of fun together…and a li’l bit of studying too! And then came my college friends. A close knit group of seven, together we were fun, cute, mischievous, curious, sweet….& studious too!

My colleagues came next. Some are more than mere colleagues, we are friends, and very close at that. In between there came a special person, my teacher, my mentor who is also my friend. He gave a twist to my thinking, my perspective on life. And therein began my spiritual life. After that came a lot of friends who walk the same path as I.

But this blog is not about any of those friends. This blog is about my closest friend…my buddy. My buddy’s entry into my life was most inconspicuous. Really nothing to write home about. We met, we said hi, we acted pricy, we left. Period. Later we met again, we said hi, we argued, we picked at each other and left. And that’s when our friendship began.

Everyone needs a friend

Everyone needs a friend
Someone to stand by you
Someone who loves you
Someone who accepts you
With all your craziness.

Everyone needs a friend
Someone who encourages you
Someone who cherishes you
Someone who helps you
Without hesitation.

Everyone needs a friend
Someone who corrects you
Someone who reprimands you
Someone who stops you
When you’re on the your wrong track.

Everyone needs a friend
Someone who wipes your tears
Someone who share yours joys
Someone who cares for you
More than you can ever fathom.

I found in my buddy all this and more
Words fail me, I can write no more…