I see Beauty in many things. And like the ghosts that only speak to you if you notice them, they tell me wondrous tales. With my camera and my thoughts, I captured these as faithfully as I can to share with you. And by doing so, they gave me the reasons. And though the thousand reasons may not all be sweet and some indeed bitter; they are still reasons to live. Come to think about it, that is Life, isn't it?
I've had just enough time to... have a butterfly dream
Taken in the Kota Kinabalu Highlands Park, Sabah
I dreamt I was a butterfly
And it dreamt it was me
And each thought he has the better
dream
From flowers to flowers I flew
It walked through the woods on my feet
I fluttered and rode on the wind
It swam with graceful ease
I tasted nectar fresh on the flowers
It tasted ice-cream cold from the
fridge
Lying on the grass, it admired the
millionstars
I marvelled at the thousand suns
perched on a leaf
Then we were before Him
And He gently asked –
Would you be a butterfly
Or would you just be you?
We have often heard how nice it will be
if we are a butterfly or a bird. Who wouldn’t want to fly? But before we
attempt to take to the sky, have we made full use of our God given gifts? Have
we used our legs to walk through the woods in the freshness of spring, in the
shade of summer, in the colours of autumn, in the silence of winter? When was
the last time we greeted the sunrise, watched the sun sinking below the line,
laid on the grass and looked up at the night sky. If our feet have not felt the
coarseness of sand, the clinging mud, the dampness of wet grass, what business
have we to fly?
I've had just enough time to... enjoy a quiet Christmas
Taken in the park on Christmas day
This Christmas, I decided to do something different.
Under a cool, overcast sky; I took a walk in the park and have it all to
myself. Everyone is out there somewhere celebrating Christmas or visiting
friends or be just at home with their family. I took a long, slow walk playing
out the year that had gone before and relived that long journey as I walked, alone
with my thoughts. I liked doing that sometimes. Long walk in lonely places and
nothing was lonelier than the park today.
I chose a bench to sit down and savour a different feel
to this Christmas. Surrounded by trees and the songs of birds, there was not a
Christmas tree or blinking lights in sight nor any replays of Christmas songs. But
I could not get away that easily. Among the greens, white Christmas rose to the
surface and I could not get rid of it. So I might as well change a few words
and sing a few lines.
I’m reflecting on a quiet Christmas
Not like any I used to know
Where the dewdrops glisten and I listen
To the birds singing in the trees
I’m reflecting on this quiet Christmas
With every Christmas wish I made
‘May your days be merry and bright
And may all your Christmases be divine’
A couple having their marriage photos in the park
I thought about the miracle this Christmas. A friend had
a stroke and internal bleeding in his brain. A young man with an unemployed
wife and a young child. What will become of them? The doctor told the wife to
take him home and ‘get ready’. Within days, he is out from bed and moving
around apparently on the way to full recovery. We are hopeful and fearful at
the same time but each day is a blessing and a miracle.
After enough reflection and recharging of my soul, I went
home to take a bath but decided to go back and took a shot to share my quiet
Christmas on a day when I do nothing and yet felt strangely fulfilled. The bench
I sat on was now taken up by a young couple with cans of coke, snacks and a
portable radio. The scene I wanted to shoot was now taken by a couple taking
their marriage photos in the park. I smiled at the change of the situation
though it denied me my shot. So I went to another part of the park to take a
different shot which is the one you saw. On the way back to the car, I saw the marriage
couple going up the stone bridge and shot them. I was so engrossed in what I did
that I did not take note where I was standing and a large weaver ant crawled up
my leg and bit my upper thigh. With an instinctive flick of my hand, I sent it
to Ant’s heaven.
It was just an ordinary day in the park. It was also
Christmas. Nothing happened yet a lot of things did. Even in reflecting, we
should not overdo it. So I walked back, satisfied with how I spent my quiet
Christmas. “Merry Christmas and May All Your Christmases Be As Nice.”
I've had just enough time to... revisit Taiping Lake Garden
The beauty and serenity of Taiping Lake Garden and its
town has inspired many of my posts. After the last post regarding the
controversy surrounding the rain trees of the garden, I decided to revisit
them and invite you to visit them together with me. (Click on the link to
access any of the post)
The political scene in the country is depressing with
politicians trying to determine for us what patriotism is. I wanted to tell
them what patriotism is not! The photo is taken in the museum near the lake.
As much as the area surrounding the lake is beautiful,
there are also quiet places that you can visit for reflection like the war
cemetery. Don’t think me odd until you have taken a walk with the dead.
Upset by the political scene, I was inspired to write a
satire. If you are Malaysian, you should be able to understand at least some
of the allusion. I was looking for an image to go along with it when I thought
this in front of the Taiping museum appropriate.
I've had just enough time to... sit on an old park bench.
Taken of this old park bench on top of Maxwell Hill that has seen better days.
I met an
old park bench
Looking
kind of sad
Or maybe
a little mad
From the
way it blenched.
When I
am about to sit
It
shrieked “Don’t do it!”
When I
asked “Why Not?”
It said
“My purpose is lost”
“I used
to be happy
To do
what I do best
To
provide a respite,
A little
rest.
But when
they prefer the grass
I know
my time has passed,”
I sat
down gently on the dirty bench
Cradled its arm around the bend
Sat with
it silently into the night
Till it
was just us, and the starlight.
The next
morning I went back to the park
To where
the bench and me shared a spark
But the
bench was nowhere to be found
Just a puddle
of dew left on the ground.
______
A sea of
smile and a river of tears
A flood of memories
Imagination will take me back
(Chorus)
On an Old Park Bench
Old Park Bench
Old Park Bench
Old Park Bench
A summer's night, the stars aglow
Did more than light the sky
With fortune, fantasy, and fate
We dream on an old park bench
I take your hand in my hand
You hold my soul in yours
One touch becomes eternal
When falling in love
