Poem :: Baers of Rorcharch

The cuckoo escaped from its opened cage

Copper in the bedroom lit up the page 

Fellow birds embossed self-portraits on walls

Chirped and sang lullabies as darkness called

Picture window of Lake Constance adorned Baer's office 

Ferry mandolins thinly sliced the calm blue surface 

Glide across the peaceful mirrored glass with precision 

Deep-pocketed gawky tourists constant invasion 

Swinging bells echoed through the uninterrupted air

Hand in hand we explored the small neighbourhood in pairs 

A Malaysian compatriot (pulled up a chair) sat by the garden

An elongated tea drenched chat (over cups of tea) sans shenanigans

Gospel Oak started our friendship's pure beating heart

Twittering into the night sang the escaped brown lark

Melting cheese fondue infused air stealthily crept

Weaved a web of stories as the children slept 

Bid adieu and climbed aboard the train 

Disappearing lake glimpses to our left on the flat terrain

Slowly crafted into a quilted glacial dream 

Awed by the sight of waterfalls and icy streams 

Our train parallel to the Bernina tourist trail

Where the head can see its long metal tail

As time slowed down along the corkscrew tracks 

Italian gourmet welcomed by our digestive tracts

Poem :: Breathe

Breathe deeply
Forever rain wrecked 
Head down, body drenched
In a pit - a woeful wretch

Breathe deeply 
Enormous mountain 
Faraway heaven
Depressed oppression 

Breathe deeply
Soul in deep despair 
Atrocious affair 
Gasped desperate air 

Breathe deeply
Light in the tunnel 
Onto tracks...tumbled
Empty words fumbled
 
Breathe deeply 
Bright blinding white light
Lost shadowless fight
A true sorry sight 

Breathe deeply
Legs there no longer 
Mourned past pain - lingered
Child moved by stranger

Breathe deeply
Muddled clarity 
Tears in unity
Grave calamity 

Breathe breathe breathe
Rainbow to appear
Wipe the flowing tears
Stand against all fears

Poem :: Unglazed Memories

Once upon a time, when you weren't shrouded in haze 
'Twas long before the forests were set ablaze 
Snippets of warm forgotten days
Shared with my beloved of my birth place 

Where children gathered after meals
Unconventional games on football field 
Nameless familiar faces seeked thrill
All differences in identities were peeled 

Where Monopoly dice rolled for weeks
Bankrupted were loaned money -interest free
On the bitumen, badminton chalk-lined courts drawn 
Faded flip flops challenged to stay on 

Where thicket exploration was a religious rite
Risk of monkeys, and snakes bites 
The local Jungle Boy was immune
His well trodden paths roughly hewn 

Where fighting spiders with heroic names 
Metallic colours were how they came 
Kept in lairs of matchboxes 
The champion announced on the soapboxes

Where six legs rode a lone bike so slow
Snaked on either side to swallow us whole
A pair of wide open drains 
Bike frame creaked with fear from strain 

Where kites conjured from coconut leaflets and mahjong paper
Freely danced and capered 
Flown upon dead end streets
Beside the rubbish and compost heap

Where chasey orchestrated with extra challenge
Our bodies were hung on balance 
Over the first floor balustrade
The victor washed in accolade 

Where gecko eggs were inspected
Wobbly shadows projected 
Under the stairs in candle light 
Possible of hatchlings excite 

Where Ting Ting man's bell 
Sounded for the sweets and snacks he sells 
The children excitedly run to the gate
Peered into his specially made crate 

Where ais potong dripped 
Onto the dry ground the sweetness seeped 
Corn, durian and red bean
Quickly devoured before being seen 

Yearned for these innocent years
When you were bright and clear 
I stare fondly upon thee afar 
Where you stayed as you are

Poem :: Bicycle

Bright red BMX
First prize at dog show
Journeys on dirt tracks
Wind in hair bestowed

Chased by mad brown dog
Bitten on right leg
Popped tetanus shot
Needle o so big! 

Unfazed by ordeal
Freedom continued 
Rat sneakily steal
Absent of tributes

Police recovered
It was not the same 
Love rediscovered
Reignite the flame 

Free to paint my dreams
Spirit once reborn 
Two-wheeled's great esteem 
Ride forth, on and on

Poem :: Monsoon

A certain feel and scent in the air
Showered with this love affair 
Of hot earth and monsoon rain 
All this waiting is not in vain

Cross legged on the concrete floor
Screened by absent double glass doors
Waves descend down in piles 
Flood the sea of blue mosaic tiles 

Armed with paper and origami hands
Shipwrights are made on demand
White beauties slowly spawned
Begins the race to the koi pond 

This joyous season is catalogued 
With chorus of banded bull frogs 
Power outage adorned with candles 
Night filled with ghastly ghost tales

Poem :: The Fawn

Canvas shoes drew curves freehand
Like a crab's random sketches on the sand 

First bus to school filled with uncertainty 
Shaking like a leaf inadvertently

Approached our house with a warm rumble
Sky blue bus driven by a bald uncle 

Hand tally counter clicked as I alighted
A beautiful fawn was sighted

A gentle face with large brown eyes 
Dimpled smile emphasised 

Her name was Madeleine 
The tower with a beacon of light 

Her delicate hand gesture 
Its worth? A priceless treasure

Poem :: Yee Por Por

Our love for her is insurmountable 
Her sincerity rescued those troubled

Like a shepherdess with her sheep
She cared for them indeed

Her empty pockets were threadbare
Generous laughter with richness to spare 

Anticipated the nights we'd visit her house
The opposite side of the town to ours

By the tin mine lake with plentiful of children
Lotus flowers bloom in her water garden 

After dinner, our bronze Ford hummed slowly
Towards our destination in MTD

Through the heart, turn right
Cross the creek, switch on the light

As the wheels danced and swayed across the sandy grains
We shook off our troubles and pains 

Hide and seek crickets twittering 
Amphibians played melodies accompanying

The winds weaved through the pampas grass 
Martins and bugs twirl in tempo upon mirrored glass

Opened windows cleared for enhanced sensory
Locally made heong peng's scent blown in, creating memories

Crispy crust with smattering of sesame seeds 
Caramelised coconut still hot, gooey and so sweet

When one is found in London or perhaps Melbourne
Its taste, smell or form brings her back to me