Where Mud Flows Endlessly – The Mud of Sidoarjo

I've had just enough time to...  ponder the greed of men 

Taken of the village boys watching the mud flow of Sidoarjo, Java that flooded their village

The mud bubbling out the vent from the ground in the distance indicated by the rising steam

The mud was in the ground

As it always had been

Man’s greed caused it

To be pumped out

To get to the gas within

But man did not reckon

With Nature’s wrath

Now the mud flows endlessly

Inundating the poor man’s house

While the rich ran away

That is the tragedy of Lusi

Houses in higher ground covered up to the roof, all else have gone under

Turning the Circle of Life

I've has just enough time to...   continue turning the Circle of Life

Taken while strolling through the small streets of Kuching, Sarawak

The years went round in a circle that never ends

The old man turns another wheel

Another of the many he had turned

He has seen many circles

And live in many of them

But the one big circle

He travels is now coming to an end

But until that circle is complete

There are still more wheels to turn

And he keeps turning them

_______

From the day we arrive on the planet
And blinking, step into the sun
There's more to be seen than can ever be seen
More to do than can ever be done

In the circle of life
It's the wheel of fortune
It's the leap of faith
It's the band of hope
Till we find our place
On the path unwinding
In the circle, the circle of life

Elton John - Circle of Life

Pretty Geese On The Way To Market

I've had just enough time to...   see pretty geese on the way to market

Taken on the way to work one fine morning

One fine morning on the way to work

I saw three geese riding on a truck

That is nothing strange

Till they started talking

And I could understand what was said

“Yahoo! It is fun riding on a truck”

The others agreed in splutter and gurgle

“The kind farmer is giving us a ride

To the market in this fine pick-up truck”

“What is a market?” One asked

“It is what we live for, what we eat for”

The farmer told us “You’re such pretty creatures.

Raised to be admired.”

“Look at the poor guy at the wheel”

And they babble and blabber and blather

“He has to work to live because he is ugly!”

And they chatter and prattle and tattle

Then the light changed

And the truck moved and the geese

Were on their way and they called out

“Bye bye ugly, go to work!”

And their laughter echo all the way to the market…

The Monk & The Flame of Life

I've had just enough time to...   watch the flame dances.

Taken of the monk watching the flame of Life in the Temple of Shaolin

The monk stares at the flickering flame

Admiring its sensual dance of life

With the waltzing wind

As the pace picked up

The flame sparkles and frolics

Spin, sashay and gambol

Glitters, glistens and quivers

With rising passion

Consuming itself in its brilliance

And the monk wonders

Should he live Life as an untamed flame

Or an unlighted candle

How Do You Love Your Flowers?

I've had just enough time to...   love my flowers

Taken of the orchids in my garden...

How a flower looks

Depends very much on where it appears.

Will you go near a flower

Blooming on a cow dung’s heap?

Will you tame a jungle

To get near a wild bloom?

and the dancing ladies doing a wild dance in the wind...

Do you appreciate the common petals

Grown in your own garden?

Or do you covet that

Grown in your neighbor’s yard?

Do you value a flower

Because of its rich surrounding?

And not give a second glance

To that flowering in a junk yard?

while the prosperity flowers welcome the God of Prosperity, still waiting...

Do you love flowers for it beauty?

Or do you love flowers for its virtues?

Or do you love flowers because they are flowers?

Why Did The Monkey Cross The Road?

I've had just enough time to...   see the monkeys crossing the road.

Taken of the monkeys crossing the road on my return journey from Lake Chini, Pahang

Why are the monkeys crossing the road?

Because the first monkey did

Why did the first monkey cross the road?

To get to the other side

But why did it want to get to the other side?

Because it wants to cross back from where it came from

But why did it cross in the first place?

Now that is a very profound question that philosophers have been trying to decipher for centuries. They even compared monkeys to chickens but found nothing in common. The chickens cross the road because they are chickens…

And?

The monkeys cross the road because they are monkeys.

Man crosses the road because…

Are You Stepping Up or Are You Stepping Out?

I've had just enough time to...   be stepping up!

Taken just before stepping up to a restaurant in Hanoi

Are you stepping out?

No, I’m stepping up

Stepping over water

Stepping up the stairs

To open another door.

What will you find there?

I know not for sure

Something good I hope

Something different I’m sure

And I can always step out again

Stepping up is hard (not hard) to do...

Up another flight of steps

Through another open door

And if that is not what I seek

I will seek some more

For that flight of steps

That leads to that open door

As promised, the naked lady at the bottom of the stairs :)

Chocolate Nightmare on Elm Street

I've had just enough time to...   have a chocolate nightmare

Taken of the chocolate sculpture in a Shanghai Baking Exhibition

A piece too many of any delight

Will a nightmare comes

Creeping, crawling, ready to pounce

Behind your shoulder it silently loom

Every road you take takes you to Elm

Shadow encroach your every step

But the shadow following, what is that?

The chill running down your neck

Is it wintery wind or frouzy breath?

You turn around

There is none

Your relief is short

For the nightmare on Elm has just begun

This is also fully sculptured from chocolate.

Running On Empty.

I've had just enough time to...   crawl on all fours.

Taken of the little green beetle that visit me in my office during office hours

Caught in the grind of every day

The day drove by me

Without picking me up

As it raced along the bend

And left me stranded behind

As I struggled after

Another day raced by

And another and another and another…

The hours complained

“Why are you so slow

We cannot wait for you”

As the tick tock faded

Another hour asked

“Why are you still here?”

Then it too is gone

And I struggled along

On slippery slope

Down on all fours

Jailed For Their Songs

I've had just enough time to...   sing my songs in jail

Taken of the jailed song birds while walking in the street of Surabaya, Indonesia.

They were jailed for their songs

Their sins were they sing too sweetly

Where is the crime in that?

You asked.

You asked the wrong question.

_______

By a lonely prison wall,

I heard a young man calling

Nothing matters, Mary, when you're free

Against the famine and the Crown,

I rebelled, they cut me down.

Now you must raise our child with dignity.

Low lie the fields of Athenry

Where once we watched the small free birds fly

Our love was on the wing, we had dreams and songs to sing

It's so lonely 'round the fields of Athenry.

Dropkick Murphys - Fields of Athenry

Ode to The Wedding Photographer

I've had enough time to...   shoot the wedding photographer

Shooting the wedding photographer in St. Thomas Cathedral in Kuching, Sarawak

The wedding photographer was all over the place

Searching every angle, squeezing tight space

The only one with sweat on his face

He shot, reviewed, reshoot one after another

But his expression always carries that same bother

Like that of a serial scowler

Maybe he feels something is eluding him

Which make him kind of grim

And the singing of hymn

Is only pushing him to the brim

Time is running out

For him to make a shot that makes him proud

And the bride shrieking out loud

So at the critical chapter

When the couple kneels before the altar

He kneels along after

And made that perfect shot together with a prayer

The Wedding Part II – The Wedding Ceremony

I've had just enough time to...   enjoy a wedding

Let the ceremony begins...

Being happy for others is a nice feeling. It makes you feel good and I was glad I attended the wedding. I felt good because I saw smiles straight from the heart and tears of joy. Maybe this will change my mind about weddings. I will not spoil it with too many words so shall  let the pictures do the talking. 

We are gathered here today...

Where the light shines down on the blessed couple...

As the voices were raised to heaven...

In the church where it all happens...

But my eyes are only on you...

While the world revolves around us, ours are frozen in time...

And the smiles spring straight from the heart...

And your protective hand circles round my waist...

And they chose the only wedding song I know how to sing! I think it is one of the most beautiful ever so enjoy it here.

The Wedding Part I – The Early Birds & Here Comes the Bride.

I've had just enough time to...   attend a wedding

The Wedding was held in in the Anglican Church St. Thomas Cathedral, Kuching, Sarawak.

Several months ago, in my last trip to Kuching before this one; I remembered an early morning conversation I had with the bride. We talked at length on many subjects including her coming wedding and she asked “You will come, ya?”

And I replied “Sure, and I will bring along a couple of loaves of bread.” For all I know, I may be the only wedding guest in the world to bring along bread as a gift to the bride on her wedding day. But it has significance for both of us but we will leave that a secret for now.

We were not the only early birds to flew here for the wedding.

Some of the early birds taking their seats waiting for wedding to begin.

I am no wedding photographer and I am not going to compete with those professionals doing a professional job. But I will share a few photographs that a professional photographer may not make. This is not my regular post but then that was not my regular day for I don’t normally attend weddings unless they were for people very close to me. So enjoy the photos that you may get if your professional photographer for the day could not make it.

The Pros at work.

The cover says it all - Love Rules.

Here comes the bride!

Ah..., a scene warm enough to melt any frozen heart.

Here is to you - Charles and Ai June. May you both always carry the eternal flame.

Watch out for Part II in a couple of days :)