रिश्ते

एक नाज़ुक सा रिश्ता है
दोस्ती भी नहीं कह सकती
आशिक़ी भी नहीं
बरसों हुए मिले
अरसे हुए बात किये
फिर भी दिल का एक कोना
उसके नाम से महक जाता है
किसी रोज़ कहीं टकरा गए
यूं ही गाहे बगाहे
क्या नज़र मिलेगी
या पुराने शिकवे,
अब तक सुलगते ज़ख्म,
आज़माएंगे ज़ब्त, कहेंगे
चलो, घर चलो
किसी को तुम्हारा इंतज़ार है.
या फिर
उन्हें अनसुना कर
आँखों में नमी लिए
पूछूंगी उस से
क्या पाया तुमने
मुझे खो कर
(pvks )

dreams

have you lived a dream
so stark
you could reach out to touch
the smells were strong
the words resounded
in your ears
and yet
and yet
you knew all along
it was but a dream
your regrets come
back to haunt you
to give you a chance
to say I am sorry
the opportunities
you let go of
come back to say
here, I am back
the decisions you
did not make
or you did make
offering themselves up
for undoing
have you lived
such a dream
then you will know
why you woke up
with your heart thundering
your eyes moist
why you were silent
for so long
you thought perhaps
you had lost your voice.
you will understand
why you stepped
down from the bed
reluctantly
you did not wish to
let go of the dream
if you could have
you would have stepped back.
ah, dreams, the stuff
that life is made of
waking or asleep
i never quite know
whether i dream
a dream
or live in a dream
will i wake up
or will i simply stop
dreaming one day
and another life
would have dreamt
all the dreams
it was meant
to.