I Have

This is a rhyming poem/game you can recite/play with a child. :-)


I have a bone
This bone is mine
I have a watch
This watch is time

I have a dress
This dress is fine
I have a sneeze
And this sneeze is slime

I have a bag
This bag is Kline
I have a doll
And this doll is blind

I have a dustbin
This dustbin is grime
I have a mystery
And this mystery is crime


I have a picture
This picture is pretty
I have a sofa
And this sofa is dirty

I have a TV
This TV is pricey
I have a bear
And this bear is cutesy

I have a mouse pad
This mouse pad is Hello Kitty
I have a parrot
And this parrot is silly

I had a hamster
This hamster was cuddly
I have a stomach
And this stomach is hungry

- by TC Lai

Balloons They Were All, Once

I saw a cartoon the other day
That had a balloon talking
It got insecure and then shrunk
I thought how apt an action that was
Don't we all feel small one time or other?

It's when I realised the balloon a good metaphor
For Life, for whom we are
We too start out life flat....Nine months later
Our mommies' tummies are inflated
Like a balloon

That balloon then shrinks and here we are
Baby fat and all, like some tube balloon twisted
The same kind that clowns make animals out of
Only now, our parents have made them into us

And then we grow

Sometimes we stay level
Other times our ego inflate
Most times we see what we can only see
That high we can only float

It is only when we go higher
That we learn of other things
Our minds expand
Our vision become inclusive

Isn't that how one must grow?
Isn't that how a balloon must expand the higher it goes?

The knowledge that it fills itself
The environment that makes it so

Finally, the balloon rises too much and pops
We too grow old and die

The pieces of balloon fall to the ground
We are buried in the ground

But for the balloon, it probably made a child happy once
Who, in his glee, had let it go
How about that old man?
Did he have a child he once made happy
And let go?

Fathers and sons
Mothers and daughters
Balloons they were all, once

- by TC Lai

A Woman to Avoid

There's a kind of woman, all thinking men should avoid
The pretty, coy and acquiescent type

Her prettiness is nice to look at
But may not tell the whole story

Her coyness may seem adorable
But is actually social ineptness

Her acquiescence may be subservient
But could be unvoiced disagreement

That someday will come back to bite

Find a woman who's prettiness
Stems from a glow, a kind of disposition

Find a woman who's coyness
Means well from less than more

Find a woman who's acquiescence
Is actually an act of agreement, not surrender

That helps to move your lot along in life

A woman who has bandwidth
A woman who has intelligence
A woman whose judgement you can trust

A woman can be all that and yet
Be seemingly pretty, coy and acquiescent

A woman I once knew but now lost

- by TC Lai

What is Happening to Me?

What is happening to me?

I used to see a woman for what she is

Her intelligent eyes; her purposeful lips; and her curious nature

Now, my eyes seek out a svelte bottom; a fluted ankle; a perky breast

What is happening to me?

I know I don't love them less

I know I don't respect them less

I just seem to appreciate them in parts

What IS happening to me?

It does not seem to matter who

Whether she is smart, talkative or soulful; Or careless with her affections

I am drawn, like a man who loves his designer togs, furniture, and gadgets

For in them too exist many planes of beauty seen from near, far, and askew

Really, what is happening to me?

In the past, I would gladly hold on to a woman I could love for an eternity

If I could love her smile, her voice, her little gestures. I could overlook her less than perfect sum

A woman that I would cuddle on a rainy day, tease and doodle

What is happening to me?

That I am now content to wax lyrical of just her and her certain features

That I don't mind her being silent to me, clueless or blank

Has age turned, changed me?

To things just pretty and candy

What's happening to me?

Is this what Second Childhood is all about

Where once I was also taken by things pretty, perky, and sharp?

Of a time that's uncomplicated; that was happy; and yet, oh, so gratifying still?

A time of infatuation

What is happening to me?

That the scent of a woman could draw me along, float me along - drunk

Is it because I am old but young; old and still longing; seeking?

Or am I like a ill old man grasping at pills

A pill that's shaped like a svelte behind; a pill that's shaped like fluted bones

A pill that's shaped like cupped flesh

So that I may live again

What is happening to me?

That I seek such new and strange ways to love

- by TC Lai

I've Seen A Death

I walk up from the sea in clothes of weeds

A man sits by a rock

"And what wakes you," he asks

"And what idle thoughts bring you here," I reply

We look at each other for a while

Thinking familiar yet unknown thoughts

We pistol finger each other as if to say, "Touche."

He continues to smoke a cigar

And I continue to walk up the beach

An imprint. An imprint in the sand

A shadow that's not born of a shifting sun

Had I lain there for so long?

A woman comes and places a flower by it

She is in tears and full of kindness

"Someday," she says, "I will also be a shadow that's dead to time."

I scoop up a handful of sand and drop it on the figure

Where the mouth should be

The sand falls but never builds

Where does it go?

There is depth in darkness and I have just seen it

It should be strange but I am not surprised

The lady does not move nor seems to be affected

I am after all just a mess of weeds on the beach

How tall am I? I wonder

Why, just a moment ago....

I peek through the weeds and see shuttered light

The lady is also looming tall

Did I just shrink?

Water now washes over me and air bubbles away from my mouth

Then my lungs and other orifices

I struggle but entangle myself even more

And then I float and is washed ashore

The shadow that was there is a shadow no more

- by TC Lai

Trapped

I stand under a tree and a branch cracks my head.

I go to the hospital but catch something else.

I was healthy but now am very sick.

I lay in bed as my life ebbs away.

A priest comes to bless my soul.

I say, "Father, no need. There isn't a god in the world that can save me."

"But son," the priest says, "It's never too late."

The priest man, he doesn't under this sick man.

"It is not salvation I want," I whisper.

"It's simply the medicine that I need."

The priest he hears but still prays.

The nurses stand by just in case.

A girlfriend stands and watches.

"Wait," I say to her. "Aren't you dead?"

A nurse turns to stare but her look is blank.

My girlfriend speaks and her voice is missed.

"It's not your time yet. All will be well."

She turns and walks away.

A bright light and all is normal again.

My heart is weak and stops.

A nearby machine wakes and screams.

An alarm has gone off.

The nurses rush over; the doctors rush over.

They pump me with syringes, fire me with shocks.

I see all this but is not afraid. Not when one is floating and detached.

But soon I am sucked back in.

I choke and wake and grip my bed.

So, that's what it is like to die, even for a few seconds.

Slowly the pain ebbs; slowly the days pass.

I get better and leaves the hospital.

I stand under a tree and an egg drops.

The egg cracks and a life ebbs....even before it has begun.

But I am alive and yet a life I have not.

When, I ask, are you going to start?

I walk away from the tree and a car cracks my leg.

I go to the hospital.....

- by TC Lai

Bread

What is it about fresh bread, baked
that is so invigorating

That will move even a dying man's head.

To bear it up for a last sniff of life
A life once lived, a life again relived

But for a fleeting moment.

Bread, the bearer of smiles
To the living, to the about-dying

Always fresh, always the best.

Ah, bread my mom used to bake
Bread my neighbour used to sell

Bread I used to share, fight over

Bread I had used as communion
during a wedding ceremony

So long ago. A love so fresh

A bread of happy times
A bread of hungry times

A bread of innocent times

Bread. Break. Broken.
A dying man drops his head

A pain is gone, a smile remains

- by TC Lai

Something in Nothing

Can nothing be made of something?
It's kind of fun to wonder about that

That space itself is a construct

Hard to picture, isn't it?
But air itself was once hard to comprehend

Then vacuum

But vacuum is just space devoid of air
Like highways devoid of cars

So what holds vacuum up?

We can all find space
In the infinitely big to the infinitely small

Can space be so small as to not exist?

Even in a black hole
Where matter is supposedly dense

Very, very dense

Yet even in a crowded train
There are pockets of space

We are not uniform

Is what makes space out there uniform?
Are the particles out there dancing different?

That somehow they are space and yet not space?

Like when blood flows through water
Is it more conscious of its stream?

Or that its movement define water

The nucleus makes the atom
The quarks make the nucleus

Yet, charm and strange particles make the quark

Who makes these still?
Or anything with mass

For what is an object without mass?

A soul? A soul that runs the machine
That machine which is us

The sum of all parts

Really, everything has to move
If not, standstill is the death of us

So everything that moves is life

How a knitting needle has to move
To make a fabric we can feel, see

When it stops, creation is halted

We know everything is a probablity
Where the electron might be

It blinkers on when we see, off when we don't

So how will space collapse?
When gravity is weak or strong?

'Strong' it is by intuition

But what if weak is the answer
When pockets are torn in the fabric of space

What some call 'dark matter'

Is that why they exist?
In the absence of gravity?

For it is in the dark, that space matters not

We stand alone, all by ourselves
We see not how far the distance

For only in distance, we find space

And in space, we find ourselves
A reason to be, a reason to exist

And that is something in nothing

- by TC Lai

All for a Child

Men have done it

Leave the wife and kid

At times kids

A man must make his way

They say

That's a man's lot

But would you, could you

When Dad has never been around

To show you the world?

Would you let a child grow

Alone with wind and rain?

To always wonder the reason why?

It's painful when there's no love

Much worse when there's no conversation

It's all about food, housework and laundry

How can a man survive on such trivial?

How can a man prosper on such menial

Thoughts, actions and pretentions?

A man will die I tell you

Lest he will himself

To exist for that one child

A life he has led

A certain life he must now live

But not for himself but an offspring

An offspring that's fortunately

Sweet, good-natured and forgiving

A child of his childhood

But yet a child with blindspots

Her blindspots

A love of books yet not

But a daddy she did snag

A child she did get

Out of lies, reticence and selfishness

But now he knows better

A chance will come

When father and daughter

Will leave for lands afar

No longer having to bear with

Ignorance, stupidy and selfishness

Some women are a pain in the ass

And not worth marrying

Women who have not earned the right

Women who have not captured the heart

Nor intellectual curiosity

But loins one long night ago

For that, any man will leave

To  some place afar

To start anew, to breathe anew

To find himself once more

- by TC Lai

Pledges for Singaporeans

‎‎1. Singapore Pledge for Foodies 2012
2. Singapore Pledge for Civil Servants 2012
3. Singapore Pledge for Govt Scholars 2012
‎4. Singapore Pledge for Sports Fans 2012
5. ‎Singapore Pledge for Govt Ministers 2012
6. Singapore Pledge for the Social Gambler 2012
7. Singapore Pledge for the Child-less 2012 
8. Singapore Pledge for School Children 2012
9. Singapore Pledge for Taxi Drivers 2012
10. Singapore Pledge for Maid Employers 2012
11. Singapore Pledge for Sg Sports Council 2012
12. Singapore Pledge for MOM 2012

1) Singapore Pledge for Foodies 2012

We the citizens of Singapore (burp!)
Pledge ourselves as one always-hungry people
Regardless of got hum/no hum; got chilli/no chilli
To order up a delicious storm
Based on what the old hawker uncle/aunty can dish up
So as to achieve lau nuah happiness, tummy-rubbing satisfaction, and
High BMI-index for our nation. (burp!)

2) Singapore Pledge for Civil Servants 2012 

We the civil servants of Singapore
Pledge ourselves as one well-behaved people
Regardless if the girl was young or 18
Slim, got big boobs or not
Based on shape, size or lies
So as not to be conned into thinking
it's congress for the nation

3) Singapore Pledge for Govt Scholars 2012

We the scholars of Singapore
Pledge ourselves as one anti-lewd lot
To stop touching or groping
kids of various age and nudity
Based on need to satisfy
Some paedophilic urge or fantasy
that again embarrass the nation

‎4) Singapore Pledge for Sports Fans 2012

We the sports fans of Singapore
Pledge ourselves as one united people
Regardless of EPL club or telecom operator
To not continue be held ransom to ridiculous rates
Based on forever expanding TV rights monies
So as to enjoy a simple football match without
Starving half the people of the nation

5) ‎Singapore Pledge for Govt Ministers 2012

We the ministers of Singapore
Pledge not to throw foreign talent in yr face
Regardless of GDP growth, quarterly earnings or our bonus
To build a more inclusive society
Based on the over-40s, over-50s, and over-60s
So as to overcome myopia, disdain, distrust and
ignorance of the non-elites in our nation

6) Singapore Pledge for the Social Gambler 2012

We the social gamblers of Singapore
Pledge to continue our support for Singapore Pools
Regardless of fixed income, food-price rise or inflation 
To continue to play 4-D, Toto or visit the casino
Based on feeling, accident car plate numbers
So as not to deny the Community Chest charities
the monies and their duty to our nation

7) Singapore Pledge for the Child-less 2012 

We the child-less of Singapore
Pledge to pull down our pants a little more
Regardless of project deadlines or aged in the room
To build up lust and sordid passion
Based on mutual stimulation
So as to achieve titillation, orgasm and
more babies for our nation

8) Singapore Pledge for School Children 2012

We the school children of Singapore
Pledge ourselves a tuition-free existence
Regardless of grades, kiasu parents or other kaypohs
To build a stress-free, memorable childhood
Based on marbles, spider-catching and kite-flying
So as to achieve a less exam-smart mindset and
a better street-smart mentality for our nation

9) Singapore Pledge for Taxi Drivers 2012

We the taxi-drivers of Singapore
Pledge ourselves as one less confusing lot
Regardless of peak hours, ERP, public holidays
To charge just one freaking fare
Based on destination, not surcharge bingeing
So as to achieve a pleasant, math-less and
cuss-less ride for all in the nation

10) Singapore Pledge for Maid Employers 2012 

We the maid employers of Singapore
Pledge to treat them as we would our daughters
Regardless of laziness, cluelessness and personal hygiene
To not make them clean windows, climb high places
Based on some anal need for clean windows
So people will not think us heartless, cruel and  
basically kiasi of a nation

11) Singapore Pledge for Sg Sports Council

We the lau-jiao of the SSC
Pledge ourselves to not use any more FTs
Regardless if our kids are getting fat, out-of-shape and iPad-totting
To build a sporting nation of incomparable records
Based on hot-dog eating, fishball swallowing and mass displays
So as to achieve pride as citizens, born and bred and
raised on recycled toilet waters of the nation

12) Singapore Pledge for MOM 2012

We the people at MOM Singapore
Pledge ourselves to celebrate our moms
Regardless of grad, A-level or O
To build a more mamographic society
Based on Manpower AND Womanpower
So as to achieve equality, parity and
sorority for our sistas across the nation

- by TC Lai

Next Time (or Trying The Manual on Romantic Love)

1. Line Up Chocolates to the Belly Button
Which direction, I had to ask
How kinky do you want to be?
So I tried it on myself
I bent, they all fell down
I had to eat them off the floor

Next time: Lick the chocolates first

2. Nibble on Ear
Animal, Vegetable or Opposite Sex? I had to ask
The cat scratched my face
The corn had to be cooked
The gal gave me a slap when I drew blood

Next time: Try on stewed pig's ears first

3. Pen a Poem
I love your eyes
They are as big as your knockers
I love your nose
They flare up like carburettors

I love....
She crumpled the card and threw it in my face

Next time: Compliment her ass ('As big as a car wash?')

4. Buy Her Flowers
She said she loved white
So I bought her white chrysanthemums.
Go and die, she said.

Give me a chance, I said
Buy me something orange.
So I bought her Day Lillies
They killed her cat.

Next time: Buy her plastic flowers

5. Cook Something for Her
Cooked her wagyu steak
She said she was vegetarian
Made her ice cream
She was lacktose intolerant
Baked her a cake
She said she rather have salad
Made her salad
She said she wanted rojak, not Caesar's

Next time: Get her a Kopitiam voucher

6. Walk Along The Beach
They say to find a moonlit night
When the stars are out
And the waters sparkly
And the sand smooth
First, she stepped into a pothole
And sprained her ankle
When she fell she gashed herself on beer bottle glass
Lying there she got swarmed by sand flies

Next time: Try the pool

7. Read in front of a Fire
It was cozy, the fire was kindling
Throwing gentle highlights onto her cheekbones
Also cinders into her hair
It burst into a ball of flame
And sent her running, into the snow
She fell head-first into the flaky ice
Like an ostrich in the sand
I ran after her but slipped and
Buried my face into her derriere
And found hair - not singed

Next time: Skip fatt-choy during CNY

8. Dedicate a Song on the Radio
I picked the station
Selected the song
And decided on the time
I even prepared the dedication note
Everything was perfect until
The radio DJ said her name wrong

Next time: Send her an sms and an iTune

9. Buy Her a Dress
Bought her a dress
She said it was a size too small
Am I saying she's fat?
Bought her another dress
She said it was a size too big
Was it meant for another girl? she said
Bought her yet another dress
She said it was the wrong color
Bought her a scarf
She said it made her look old
Bought her a cheong sam
She said I mock her
Bought her a sarong
She said I implied she was a slut
Bought her cloth
She said I was not sincere

Next time: Bring her to H&M and just pay

10. Go to a Movie
Bought the tickets
For plush seats
Bought the gourmet popcorn Garrets
And champagne wine
The lights dim
A man named Joker came in
Threw smoke and opened fire
She screamed, I screamed
She looked a mess, I looked a mess
She's not speaking to me ever again

Next time: Rent a dog and DVD

- by TC Lai

Cat

Cat, you came into my life unexpectedly
You were stray

But you won over my affections quickly
You were loving

And you were trustful
To let me hold

You followed me by my heels
From the ground floor to the 13th

You didn't even flinch
When we walked into the lift

You looked at me as if to say
"I am ok with you, right?"

Right you were, creature with
The sweetest smiles

Eyes that shine with intellect
A tail that hugs with affection

You were smart and learnt quickly
How to travel up and down

You were often absent at night
Curious you were, an adventurer you were

On the evenings when we  went out,
People were curious

No leash? they'd say;
Wouldn't she run away?

Nope, I would reply
And surprise then writ large on their faces

Children were always attracted,
Some shy to approach

I would teach them the right way
To say hello to a cat, to a dog

For to them a sniff is like a handshake
A pat unannounced like a threat

But around you, Cat
There's always kindness from children

Also unbridled joy
Unconditional love

Alas, things have to come to an end
It could not last

My old-time sinus betrayed me
Telling me with each sneeze

That our time together would be short
That this is not meant to be

How can this be when I am never like this?
Does age make one susceptible?

So a new home I found you
A new owner who loved you just as much

But I wonder, as a parent might wonder
If that child remained how my life might turn out

It still pains, but the happy memories remain
I sit on the same bench and recall

Cat, wasn't that a lovely walk?
And you would look up and beam: 'Yes!'

It's all the pleasure I ask
Cat, I miss you

- by TC Lai

[This poem is inspired by the painting (above) United and In Harmony by Juan Carlos Munoz and my own experience with a lovely kitten that I had fostered for a short while.] 

Mother Seed

They said f*** my face
I said no need
I've got seeds already

Seeds that will not grow into hatred
Seeds that will not ravage the land on which they stand
Seeds that will bear fruit to feed, not industrialise

As I speak, seeds fall out
Plantlings grow on the spot
They are my thoughts
There, up one rises
She is frightened, of what?
Poachers?
She is of torns, wary - to keep them away
My thoughts. But will it work?

I worry about the oceans
When fishes leave to never return
The whales echo, unimpeded
Voices swallowed by darkness
Where are the peoples of my sea
Why are the playgrounds silent?

A child springs forth
She is of vines, of scales
Her eyes are wide with fear
Of a net, a hook, a very loud noise
She is rooted, she cannot run
Only to wait... in fear

I cough, the air smells funny
A seed drops
This child, she is weak
She does not rise, but lies on the floor
She writhes, thrashes. Where's the sun?
Where's the water?
Where's the air?

I shake my head in disbelief
More seeds fall out
And yet some more

The children rise, of this and that
Soon, I am surrounded
by a forest of young plantlings
murmuring, muttering
Creating a hum of noise
of dread that rises to a crescendo

It shrinks me

I fall to the ground an empty gourd
Swarmed by my children...like ants
I'm seedless, dry, worn

I now walk weakened in that gourd shell
My children's voices rumbling on the other side
I am small
I turn a corner
And there she is...The ocean
Blue, bright, salted with life
Bordering her, a verdant forest
Birds flit in noisy harmony
Trees, tall - majestic

A stream runs by
It is clear, sparkling
I stoop to take a drink
It is fresh
I feel it emptying into me
Filling me up
Like my own blood would

I sit
A gourd in my hands
It softens
Flesh appears
then seeds

I think and a seed drops

- by TC Lai

(Poem was written after seeing Alicia de la Campa's artwork for the first time (pix above). Such lovely rhetorical pieces.)

How Could I...

Old school friends are like the favourite soft toy that we have put aside to pursue things grown up.

The soft toy that kept us company when we were alone; that gave us courage when we were afraid; that comforted us when we were wronged.

That listened to our dreams, our worries, our awkward attempts to understand the world around us.

But most of all, that favourite soft toy was there when we needed it most; for a hug and a grasp of the hand, a reassurance that the night though dark would soon be light again in the morning. As when a new day is born and when hope springs eternal. The tears will dry, the smiles return. Another adventure thus begins anew. We, together.

The years pass and I am grown. I once again say hello to this favourite soft toy of mine. It is a little tattered, a little torn. However, I am reminded of the warmth and unconditional friendship it has given me. And I say, not without regret, How could I not return to you sooner?

- by TC Lai

We Dance

[For dear Carmen, 2nd April 2011]

I love the waltz
for that is when I can hold you near

Feel the beat of your breast
and the sweetness in your breath

I know I know
I should watch my step

As we twirl and swirl
in a room full of unfamiliar guests

But we do not stumble
you and I

For we have a rhythm
all of our own

I dare not grip you too hard
For with you I can only be tender

Who would not be
With such a creature so slender?

Just to gaze upon those eyes
so kind and gentle

Beyond the music
Beyond the dance

I am swooned
by your many wonders

The softness of your hair
The sweetness of your scent

The lure of your nape
The curve of your waist

Though I stand taller
you are the perfect fit

For us to glide and swoosh
across the floor and more

People look at us
and marvel at our grace

So effortless
So timeless

How did they become
so good, to gel so well

It's as if we were
from another age

When worries and cares
touch us not

When the world was kind
and generous

When the world I believe
was carefree and young?

There is nothing like the waltz
When two kindred souls step in tune

Heart beating as one
Hands clasping as one

The world can be a blur
for all I care

For only you I look
and behold

For only you
the music must play

For only you
my lips will whisper

This waltz, this waltz
I forever dance with you

- by TC Lai

A Need, a Want, a Desire

I was asked how love blooms

I said it requires no seed

Then I was asked why it festers

I said 'cos it's a want that comes from no need

But there's always a great need!

A need to be with that special someone!!!

Is it a need, I ask, or is it a desire?

A need can be satisfied but a desire lingers

Yes, yes, it's a desire!

Oh how I desire her so

But why? 'Cos love is blind?

Oh, don't be cliche! Love is not blind

But is not all desire blind?

I have a want because there is a need

I have a need because there is a desire

And there is a desire because...

So it is not love

Just as a flame burns doesn't mean there's

a love for light

Just as there is hunger, not all food can 

make it right

So what is it with me and Angie

This lingering, festering affection

We could have been one, but we are not

We could have stepped out but I dared not

Not because I did not like her

Not because I did not love her
Sweet laughter,

Kind smile,
Soulful eyes,
and cute voice that was like a song in my ear

But I was mistaken

that there was still something between me and Dee

It had grown from a desire, a need, a want.

But the want was waning, the need was dying
And the desire gone.

Still you try not to give up
For love's path is not always easy.

But there's Angie
So natural, so comfortable
If only we had met sooner.

But without Dee, there wouldn't have been
an Angie, for they were mates from a distant land.

And so, what am I to do?
Leave one for the other?

My righteous self was disapproving
"T'is not right..."

And so that fateful day when Angie asked
"Be with me?"
When she actually said:
"How are you and Dee?"

I said ok when I should have said
"I rather be with you."

I could tell she was crestfallen, her shoulders slumped
And I wished immediately those words taken back

Though what came out of my lips
was despised by the heart
I didn't say more

Oh why oh why didn't I say more!
Oh why???

It's been long since Dee is gone
And so is Angie

All that remains
is but a photo in a red tin box

That on certain days
There is a great need to take it out
For a great want to see
those soulful eyes
that kind smile.
And a great desire to say
"Be with me?"

Sigh. Always there remains a need, a want, a desire

- by TC Lai

Next: We Dance

The Old Lone Tree - Valentine's Day Poem 2

I come home early

and the house is empty

I put the roses down

and go into the kitchen

No one's there.

I open the fridge and lunch greets me

with a note:

"Your favourite :-)"

I smile

It's not the first one she has given me.

I pocket the note and tuck in

I don't finish the meal for the quiet is unusual

Where is she?

I peer into the garden and see the flowers

tendered to by her loving hands

I stroke the curtains by the window

picked by her good taste

I then see the kitchen that has served

a lifetime of nourishment.

The dent in her chopping board 

the bald patch of her wok

the laundry dried and collected in a pile.

They smell of her favourite Lavender

It's all the cologne I've ever needed.

Outside the air is still

Evening has come and all is quiet

Even the crickets don't speak

What is going on?

I sit and wait. But no one comes

Soon night falls and our kitchen light

is the only yellow in the night.

I sit like that for what seem like an age

as the weather outside changes from 

Spring to Summer to Autumn to Winter

I see things grow, flower and then die

I see myself young again, laughing, partying

graduating, getting my first job, earning my first million. 

I grow fat and then thin then old

I sit alone in an expensive car parked by a big house

I have all the things I dream about

But just as I am old and dry

I feel hollow inside

So, this is how an old lone tree feels

Desperately bleached and hard.

A door opens and suddenly the world outside returns

I am back in the kitchen with my dinner.

My love walks in

She is smiling and holding a box

I grab her waist and hold her tight

I nudge my cheek into the softness of her flesh 

It is familiar, her waist, her shape

I hate to let go but I don't want to seem foolish

Is everything all right, she asks

I blink a tear away and smiles

So you found the present, I say

Uh huh, she winks as she says this

You know I hate expensive presents

I know, I reply, sheepish.

She unwraps the box and I fish the smiley from my pocket

I drop it in with the rest

She looks in and a thousand smileys beam back at her

Oh, you've kept them, she says, tears welling in her eyes

We hug and then kiss

Words unnecessary

The world outside grows quiet again 

and dim

For there is now only the two of us
As I taste her softness and she mine
I know I shall never be an old lone tree

- by TC Lai


Next: A Need, A Want, A Desire

All I'll Ever Need - A Valentine's Day Poem

When all is said and done
When the dishes are cleared
I sit with the lights dimmed low
And watch as he reads his papers
and slumps to sleep
No Valentine's rose necessary
No gift too much
For warmth by the hearth
With the man who's given
a life for my comfort
So I might live
A family, a friend, a passage
And as I sit and he snores
Ever so gently
I remember of days gone by
When my hand was precious to hold
When my cheek was like petal to caress
But now that I am older
And the senses not keen
I still feel the tenderness and sweetness
but in my heart. For though he is short on gifts
and sweetened words, he is sincere
in those three important little words: I Love You
And that, stretched over a lifetime
Is all I'll ever need

- by TC Lai


Next: The Old Lone Tree (A Valentine's Day Poem)