O Mother — Thou art dead! Thy fair countenance — A fleeting shade!

What remains but my orphan-tears? Who hears but a pitiless — mirage — of deers?

But, great God, my Father in High Heaven! Thou callest thy Morning Star! Shining upon me! Thou art not dead, Nor art thou deaf!

Behold, I awake into glorious dawn! Surely the flowers of noon, soon appear! Bountiful Spring-time! Graceful herons! Amidst cat-tails!

Day follows night And I, humbled, Await the age-old cycle of Heat and cold, Sun and snow Night after Day after Night As swift as the River flows

To what end — only God knows — It's not our place to know Return to your rest, O my soul!

#poems

I love a challenging Final Boss High difficulty means high reward But all my strategies cease When you, my beloved Final Boss, dies I’ve killed you, yes — And then, what am I left with? What am I left with? “Don’t die now,” I whisper, ”It’s been too fun” “Thank you for playing,” they callously applaud “What’s next?” my brain blindly gropes

In the bardo world Between your bodily death, and your soul-flight You lie down, on a picnic mat, with all the other Final Bosses From all the other great video-games I see you sipping Ethiopian coffee with them And they pass you a plate of steaming-hot nasi lemak “That was fun,” I hear you say to them

I am glad I am glad you can rest now It’s your turn to play Overcome your own chosen challenges High-difficulty, high-reward Don’t worry about me I’m writing a poem In memory of our Fun Battle

Thank you for playing with me

#poems

In no particular order, I list poems that have helped me at pivotal moments in my life.

1. The Road Not Taken, by Robert Frost.
2. Still I Rise, by Maya Angelou.
3. “Hope” is the thing with feathers, by Emily Dickinson
4. Truly, we live with mysteries too marvelous / to be understood., by Mary Oliver.
5. Leisure, by W.H. Davies.
6. Sonnet 129: Th'expense of spirit in a waste of shame, by Shakespeare.
7. These are certain signs to know / Faithful friend from flattering foe., by Shakespeare.
8. What Survives, by Rilke.

local poems

For some local flavour, lest I be accused of Euro-centric tendencies.

1. there is no future in nostalgia, by Arthur Yap.
2. Void Deck, by Alfian Bin Sa'at.

#lists #poems

Oh! clang and noise of war! and our wounds so sore! “where is God?” we cry helplessly but Jesus says, “I'm in the boat, with thee”

“do you believe – wind and sea obey me – or, do you crave – even more faith – ?”

as wise elders say: the greatest thing you can learn is to love and be loved in return

credits

1. Picture by Rembrandt, (1633). Christ in the storm on the lake of Galilee.
2. Lyrics popularised by Nat King Cole, in the song, titled “Nature Boy” (1948): The greatest thing you'll ever learn / is just to love / and be loved in return.

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1. Aquarium on Sentosa Island

Flitting past humans Helmets glow and dance. No sun. Life beneath the waves

2. Mandai Zoo

Endless screams and shrieks Long arms – furry – swing past trees Orange men with tails

3. Singapore Flyer (something like a Ferris wheel)

What goes up, comes down After your uphill battles Let go and float free

4. Gardens By The Bay

The tigers are dead Now humans roast flesh of pigs Apex predators

5. Lau Pa Sat (Hokkien dialect for “Old Market”)

White, black, brown, yellow Your faeces comes unbidden My blood is red too

#poems #lists

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Simple game. Few rules. Fun and laughter in childhood Give me back those days

I want my grandma She never hurt me at all I just want her love

Goodbye, my grandma I hope you're happier there I'll be fine, don't fret

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