Rotary International   Rotary is a global network of commu­nity volunteers. Rotary members are business, professional, and community leaders who provide humanitarian service, encourage high ethical standards, and help build goodwill and peace in the world. Over 35,000 Rotary clubs in more than 200 countries and initiate service projects to address today’s challenges, including illiteracy, disease, hunger, poverty, lack of clean water, and environmental concerns.   Rotary Club of Hicksville South   A group, largely Indian American, of like-minded friends started the club in 2009, drawn by Rotary's diverse, nonpolitical, and nonreligious structure. We are a local chapter of RI located in Hicksville, Nassau County of New York.  

QUDDUS MOHAMMED Assistant Rotary District Governor 2014-17 President, Rotary Club of Hicksville South 2013-14 Charter President, Hyderabadi Cultural Association Board Member, One World Under God Advisor, INOC Telangana Chapter Co-Chair District Literacy 2014-16 Chair, Humanitarian Projects Chair, Food for Hunger Program Lyricist, Writer and Cookbook Author Published Books Home Cooking: Recipes for Multicultural Gatherings In My Zone of Silence, A Collection of Contemporary Poems                     I am Me: In My Zone of Reflection, A Collection of Contemporary Poems

TWO WINGS OF A BIRD Rise up, O Dear! rise up on this early spring morning Get out of the dusty attic of mind, we need no silk so fine Come fly on with me, breathe scent of the ocean and morning breeze Live in harmony with nature, with bees, the timid fireflies They smile at you. You smile at them, we are birds We are two wings of a bird   We came together a thousand valleys afar Journeyed the rough seas, walking till dawn on moonless nights Amidst thunder, clouds, squeezing water from clay Far, and far, we fly soaring high, we are birds Feeble body, aching wings, veins dried Preened with pearls and liquid gold We are two wings of a bird O Dear! tremble not for tomorrows rain  We have a charming nest and straw to sleep  And enough grain for winter freeze Hoard not tight seed in greed, we are birds Share more wheat with friends and foe We are two wings of a bird   Let us stop a while by the tavern light Breathe pure nature, cha...

Like A Piece of Dust in the Wind O my Love, leave not my side Breathe the fragrant air from slumbering trees Butterflies glide from flower to flower Sit by me as we sip the tea of cardamom and cinnamon And listen to the distant music of the flute The ancient tree withers its last foliage   The autumn rain will stop in an hour The birds will depart on their flight, far away Don’t go too far, my love, you will not hear me, for it is time The Soul fly bare feet in silence Like a piece of dust in the wind   It is dark there. There are no lights on the road Don’t go too far Stay close to me. It will be too late I will be white, a shell, dust I will be a ring of fire *** When you visit my zone of silence Rip off the weeds from earth Plant a purple honeysuckle vine

O Heart! Open the Door I open the dusky inner door to your light I find You! standing beyond the seas flying a paper kite In the heavenly stars that shine over the ocean like diamond dust In the poems of Khayyam; heavenly perfume of rose and jasmine’s lust In the forgotten pages of Persian scholars Whose bazaars birthed the knowledge of celestial lights In the water clock at Isfahan witnessing Saturn’s revolution around the Sun I find Your wisdom in the historical aphorisms of the East In the flame rising from the belly of the frozen sea that fuels the light In the fracking of the earth that feeds a wealthy trade to heat In the fisherman’s catch, and in terrified hearts of oysters in the shell Your wisdom in the buds that blossom from frozen land In the singing of the nightingales “O spring is we greet” Your wisdom in the farmer’s grain from barren land In the wrinkles of Bedouin mothers, and sweet bleed of old frozen maple In the pesky ants that carry a load ten times of their bodies ...

Let Us Take A Stroll - In The Vibrant Autumn Foliage                               O serene shadow hiding behind the fragility of life                               Let us take a stroll in the vibrant autumn foliage                              Through the slumbering majestic ancient trees                     And the moss covered twisted native vines            Golden-yellow leaves cover the pathways                                   You told me there is a ben...

Mannequin with a Heart of Glass Part 1 I painted a contemporary portrait A Mannequin with a heart of glass Crazy sexy in her new hair Scarlet bright silk scarf grazing her lily-white arms   Soft shimmering light from crystal chandelier fall from the ceiling on her weary eyes Flames of carnal desires in the brush-strokes of red and orange tones Staring at the cracks in the floorboard She curls her knees in fear   She comes to life for her secret lover At night, she plays Koala-hug On the thin layer of freezing ice With a slight smile, melancholy, and fear She speaks “live everything” And my Love! when we part speak not goodbye to me   A Soft Goodnight! Part 2 I framed and hanged the portrait on an empty wall near the window The portrait is anonymous, unsigned and silent under dim light   The uncertain ocean-winds come blasting through the courtyard Heart is delicate. Ceiling is weak Keep the window closed   The precious c...

A Cup of Chai  Poem Written by Quddus Mohammed O’ wind! when the memories come striding up the stairs Take me to my portrait of gilded rim In the space between lovers and friends’ intimate Holding its breadth by tailors’ pins O’ Time! I trust not you - you change a thousand times My friends are true companions for life Like my shadow never they leave my side  A passing angel once said- these friends are rare to find   O’ Reflection! we’ve grown old as friends together Making funny faces in the mirror I hide my age to flirt with a thousand girls But I see the wrinkles on my friends with pride   O’ Soul! wrinkles grow on the shell like an art Silent tears buried in the poet’s heart Don’t visit me, my friends, to the insane home You shall be a pain to young nurses in the senior-home O’ Friends! If ever tomorrow we’re not together There is something you must always remember My glory is not in the grandeur or treasure I leave It is in the...