Liberation

She lay there, slightly a-flutter
Reluctant to take the leap and fly
He held her in his boyish hands
And with virgin thrill threw her to the sky

She quivered and she shivered
As the indifferent wind chilled her spine
She sagged back and rested limp where
On the walled terrace, she knew she'd be fine

Worried yet eager, he ran toward her
As if knowing she wanted to be reassured
And he whispered to her confident words
As if knowing he could be heard

Gingerly he released her heaven-ward
And once again firmly tugging, guided her flight
Cajoled, she let the breeze carry her
Cruising, coloured & tasselled, she was a pretty sight

She was gliding, slowly climbing higher
With scaling height, her confidence grew
Overlooking the world, meeting clouds
Buoyant, higher & higher she flew

He caught her eye, as he floated in languor
Majestic as he challenged the skies
And the wind changed course
A karmic conspiracy in disguise

Soon they were eye to eye
They flew side by side
Entangled, they were a riot of colour
She was oblivious to all, except that ride

And then, she was freefalling
Uncertain if this was real or imagined bliss
The same wind, that was once her ally
Now pushing her down to an uncertain abyss

As her paper body was ripped by thorns
She came to realise that she had
Fallen in love
But fallen from grace

He had callously let her plummet
He had brutally cut her strings
But in her fall she was more free
Than she had been in her rise to fame...

Invaluable

Like the pair of stilettos,
that once adorned her resilient feet,
lending them grace and softness...
As she stood in them,
tall and straight,
the world looked up to her
and she stared back at life,
a smile on her lips and challenge in her eyes...

They had walked with her through the mundane,
and when she danced her happy-dance,
they tapped in rhythmic joy,
and when she sat on the cold floor,
with her knees pulled close to her chest,
they caught her salty tears...

Now they lay in a forgotten corner
fighting age as it tried to steal their glory...

Like the ornate wrist watch
that once hung loosely along her wrist,
kissing palms that were garralous with destiny.
Always her steadfast companion,
not begrudging her for all the good times it was ignored,
for it hated being a villain like the clock
that struck 12 in cinderella's story.
So it would try to stop its steady advance,
Failing always, merely a puppet strung by fate...

It was always the first thing she turned to,
when she awoke blue and dazed,
in the midst of a blue night...
Now sitting atop a dusty cabinet
Rusty and unmoving...

Hands almost meeting but not quite,
it was always almost-12...

Looking at these old objects
She smiled in memory at their little conspiracy,
that night 13 years ago,
when atop a terrace with lights that outshone the million stars
she had twirled and spun and swayed to an endless tune
till her faithful pair of high-heels gave way,
sending her falling into his arms
and as he broke her fall and cradled her shaking body
her watch in a heroic act, froze in motion,
forever preserving that pure moment...

Old now, worthless they lay
But as long as they brought that playful smile to her weathered face
They would forever remain invaluable!