A walk....

I go on these walks around Sankey tank every weekend. The cool evening around the water is so soothing. No wonder multitudes throng this place - kids, parents, serious walkers/joggers, blissful couples, groups of noisy friends, taekwondo & yoga practitioners..you name it! Everybody goes around the track - some finish 5 laps, some struggle to complete one. People walk at their own pace - some furious with a sense of accomplishment, some with lay abandon, perhaps knowing that everyone indeed completes it at some point of time! You can choose to take a break in between and let the atmosphere sink in. Some parts are enjoyable, some are too crowded & noisy. Sometimes when walking or jogging with a purpose to 'exercise' I keep looking forward to the completion & somehow it is not very enjoyable. When I come with no purpose at all, walk so slowly that 80 yr olds can overtake me with ease...then it seems there is no end, but only the one current step ! What joy!

The banyan tree

Strong are the roots that bind me
To this ground that I consider my own
Spreading far and wide are these branches
Each springing a root of it's own
As I spread farther and farther
The original that started it all strengthens
I grow stronger with every springing branch
No wind, hurricane or rain can uproot me
Seems I'm blessed to be this banyan tree
Holding on firmly to where I came from
Imbibing distant ideals to keep on growing
Knowing death scarce, from generation to generation
I cling on to the same old place
But, how will I conquer other worlds
With these roots entrenched so firmly?
Now I know, this is a curse, disguised as a blessing !
Now I wait for the wind so strong
That will uproot me and carry me away
To the far off lands, far off worlds
So the learning can continue,
In another world, another time.