Life (inspired by Charlotte Bronte)
life is like the sea
that reverberates with the waves
in the calm of morn, in the first light
when a breeze freshens up
every cell, builds up
tiny waves the way ink brush
creates ripples in water
the painter dips into
for his next masterpiece
spring of life - childhood
who every minute seeks
a new adventure sweet or sour
happenings that would spring up
from the mighty ocean of the mind
in later years for a poem or two
life is like the sea
when the strong wind
begins to show its force
unfurling the massive calm
which this morning
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Ode to the Earth
poetry in progress
the way you spin a game
of success on the theory
of ying yang, ever since you
took hold of the sky in your
winning azure blue and rich
potato brown you have sprung
so many surprises on us
as you twirl, you amaze
and unwittingly win
unrestrained applause
you hold onto the day
and night so dutifully
and evenly to unveil to
us the presents and
blessings of time
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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A riddle song
all the things around me
living and non living
the clouds, plants
a test to locate the real self?
the grass reflects me to me
a test something somewhere
puts me into
manoevring me in his hands
the grass, the clouds,
his parts for a part of me
in his strange game
to find a solution beyond
my comprehension
a million star times
i am not equipped with means
to say i am lost
only he knows wherefore
i am leading to
whether this heart that beats
beating
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Written on a Summer Evening
this melancholy dusk
as the rain falls into night
ever so softly
the breath of a dying woman
this bonechilling wind
trails the air
the darkened roofs
of the malay houses
add a solemnness to the place
filled with flowers
fruit trees, wild trees
a koranic verse is heard
and another cool breeze blows
the leaves rustle
the way a man shivers
big leaves, small leaves
twirl in succession
a twist dance
so cold the night
the old woman
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Butterflies
women are like butterflies
dad always said
when he was alive
oh how true that is
mom, sisters, aunties,
they are all butterflies
with colourful stories
to tell of their love
and alluring attire
as they dance out
the steps of life
fly in and out of days
gathering memories
golden, sweet, light
and fluid as honey
kisses, presents, flowers and all
cupboards full of cotton, silk, crepe,
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Grass (inspired by Whitman's A child asks what is grass)
grass gently waves,
sways, twists and swirls
with the gentle breeze
in a thousand steps and styles
god's merciful and caring hands
a bewildered young soul
asked ' what is grass? '
wrote lucky Whitman
who was so inspired by
the boy that he wrote
a long poem about life and death
well what is grass?
a genius mind would gather
it is god clothing his earth, men
his way of crocheting to cover up
nudity of his every land
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Knee-Deep in June
the sea beats a path to me this june
the two islands that celebrate summer
shaking hand once a year with the the extreme ebb
and i walk back knee deep in the waves
after crossing over to the other side for a stroll
the gulls that fly back to roost deepens the chill
i shiver and shiver in the breeze
a central figure walking out of a piece of impressionistic art
Knee-Deep in June
-------
Tell you what I like the best -
'Long about knee-deep in June,
'Bout the time strawberries melts
On the vine, - some afternoon
Like to jes' git out and rest,
And not work at nothin' else!
Orchard's where I'd ruther be -
Needn't fence it in fer me! -
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Trees
whenever the lustre of my amber glistens,
i could feel the price it had exacted on the trees,
blood red tears meandering rough and uneven tracks
to land where they were kept like a child for a million years
they emerge to fascinate us with coruscating tales
of the romances with time, lost on the memory of men,
the dinosaurs, the first forests, the insects -
which now sparkle with such subtlety - they draw us
to the heart of their very existence, the million
years in the now, solidified, and now dangling right
at the door to the heart, our bossom
the trees, the trees, so many of them
standing tall and proud, as if broadcasting to us
if they had not been around, creation
would have been at a standstill
the trees, the trees, they fuel the world
a panacea to foibles rolled into one tall order, -
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Japanese Jabberwocky
Jabberworky, Jabberworky tale
lone night walk on Onitaka
(tall ghost in Japanese)
Shimousa Nakayama, Chibaken
back to the haunted house
- we did not know until told -
where we lived with them
for two quiet years - japanese
jabberworky ghosts - an old man and woman -
penniless - killing themselves
and we were sleeping on where
they had laid, as they bade
the world goodbye, cold like stones,
but did they leave, fly away, jabberworkies?
they were there. the two who kept the days
in numbers, who even foretold my life -
two lives which had ended - or did they? -
telling the living how his life would be?
what a Jabberworky dream it was?
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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The Sea has Many Moods
poetry in progress
the sea has many moods
you need more than one
canvas to paint them all
and an imagination cresting
like waves sweeping onto shores
the sea has many moods
it presents dawn with
streaks of luminous hope
and slowly breaks through
the menacing bleakness of night
to give us a new day -
a fresh new born, his eyes
gleaming like angel and that
first cry which opens to us
a new terrace for love - a chill
that slowly builds into a warmth
between us knowing that it
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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