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 look out the window into the world with a sad smile
The clown looking out the window into the world in historic city of Malacca
Looking
out the window
Into the
world
With empty
eyes and a smile
The
small kid runs, laugh
And
pointed
He likes
it best on hot afternoons
When
only stray dogs
Roam the
silent street
On
cloudless night when pebbles
Reflects
the moon’s silvery lights
On rainy
days when heaven’s tears
Spear
the lonesome Earth
Always withthe same smile
The same
empty eyes
Looking
out the window
Into the
world from behind bars
I was
wandering through the street of one of my favorite city. The historical city of
Malacca where there always new discoveries to be made. At a corner building of
the Ironsmith Street “Jalan Tukang Besi” away from the maddening crowd, I saw a
Chinese Clown in a T-shirt looking eerily out a window of the brightly painted
orange building. Its fathomless eyes unreadable and its sardonic smile
uninterpretable. What are its thoughts to be looking out the window every day?
I tried to imagine but it is not easy to be a clown with sad eyes and an uneasy
smile.
I've had just enough time to... receive an award for blogging!
It is not the Oscar but it will do, taken in Kuala Lumpur of a recycled statue
“A Thousand Reasons” was nominated for the Liebster Blog Award by Alena, a teacher of Belarusian language and literature who maintained an excellent blog “My Native Belarus” (please check it out).
What is the Liebster Blog Award? “The Liebster Blog Award is given to up and coming bloggers who have less than 200 followers. “Liebster” is German for “favorite”. This award is the “favorite blog award” then. The rules for this one state that you answer the 11 questions asked of you by the Blogger who gave you this award.”
Well, the Liebster Award is unfortunately not the Nobel Price or even Oscar of Blogging. (*smile*) If you are interested you can check out the Liebster Award’s origin in this very informative post of “Sopphey Says”. Still, it is nice to be recognized by a fellow blogger that your blog is one of her favourite. Thanks, Alena.
So in the spirit of things, I will answer these 11 questions in “A Thousand Reasons” traditional and unique way. An image and a former post (click the links) with explanations to answer each of the 11 questions. So here goes –
Living well in an imperfect world is my motto.
1. Your life motto?
I like what Mr. Spock does, lifts up one hand, divide his fingers and said “Live long and prosper” so I have a somewhat similar motto – “Live an interesting life”. If you can’t, then try to make it as interesting as you can wherever you are.
Because it encompassed my principle of living an interesting life in an imperfect world. To take beauty where I find it, to look for it when it when it is not apparent to the casual eyes, and to know I will find it if I just look hard enough. To live instead of waiting only to find -
Alas, I realized too late –
I was only meant to live
Freedom is the ability to cross the road when you want to.
2. What do you mean the word "freedom"?
The first thing I learned in Economics is the differentiation between “Needs” and “Wants”. Needs are what is needed for survival. Wants are what we desire. To have true freedom, we must first be free of the essentials of need to survive. After that, freedom to me is the ability to do what I want without hurting others. And the freedom to not allow others to hurt me. Idealism such as freedom can only survive after the needs have been reasonably fulfilled.
Because the monkeys have the freedom to do as they pleased including crossing or not crossing the road. But even they have to conform to the rules of the tribe and abide by them – freedom within boundary is the only true form of freedom or we are wilder than the monkeys.
The Minions know more about wardrobe than I do.
3. Name 5 things in your wardrobe, without which you cannot live.
I swear this is a more difficult question than “freedom”! For a man that is. For there is nothing in the wardrobe I cannot NOT live with except maybe one. Like the Minions Sang “Underwear! Like the moon and the star above, without them, naked I swear – underwear!”
Why “Minions Rule the World”? Because they answered the difficult question more eloquently with a song than I can with words -
It is a miracle I found this Buddha by the wood in Munich
4. Do you believe in miracles?
I am not really a religious man. More spiritual than religious if you must. I don’t know if I believe in miracles. But I do pray for miracles to occur – mostly, to help someone beyond help. I am not even sure which God I prayed to but I prayed to him to deliver. It does not make me a believer should the miracle comes true, I do not blame Him when it doesn’t. If that makes me human or hypocritical, you are right.
Why “Buddha By The Wood”? Because, the last thing I would expect to find why wandering in an apartment block in Munich; is –
When I found Buddha on a walk
In a distant land
By a pile of cut wood
Sitting there, serenely
Where he belongs
The century old rain tree that soothes my heart.
5. What kind of tree you associate yourself?
The rain tree for I’m most at peace under its spreading branches and million tiny leaves. Whether when the sun blinks at me through the tiny leaves or when rain drops dripped down to soak me, I always feel a closeness with the rain trees more than any other trees.
I've had just enough time to... get out from in-between...
Shot on the last day in Singapore...
The last
few days I was in Singapore with my team to do development work on a new
project with some really nice people. Every morning when I went down from the
24thfloor and coming out of the lift when I returned at night; I
will look out the window sandwiched between the two rows of lifts. Always
looking for something worthy to shoot and each time wondering whether I have a
storyfor the little child’s bicycle with the pink frame outside the balcony.
But I did not shoot that. On the last morning as I was about to rush down to
check out, I again looked out the window. It was a dark and rainy morning, kind
of gloomy. It was then, for the first time I noticed the world in-between the two
apartment blocks…
...on a rainy and gloomy morning,
In-betweens
I’m in-between.
In-between jobs
The last one’s no good
The new one’s not promising
But I’m in-between
So I guess that’s okay
I’m in-between relationships
The old one’s heart-breaking
The current one’s temporary
So I guess
That makes it tolerable
I’m in-between Lives
Up to now, it is kinda disappointing
So I need some re-inventing
For my Life is in-between
In-between
All those in-betweens…
I saw for the first time, the world in-between.. in-betweens
Taken in an Art Exhibition on Ants in Jenjarom, Malaysia.
Will we
meet and
If we
should meet
As
friends or foes?
Will we
find
Should
we meet
Wonders or
bias?
Will we
fight and
If we
should fight
Know
what we are fighting for?
Maybe it
is better not to meet
And live
in our own little state
For we
are not ready
For the
wonders that is the world.
_______
And now my friends, let us watch the video together and sing along. It is easy and I know you can do it. After all, it is just about ants, how difficult can that get?
.JPG)
