snooze

I woke up to find
my hand on the snooze button;
I had been snoozing
all these while, remaining
in a state of transient,
but deep enough sleep.
I fell back into the realm of my dreams quickly each time,
and through it getting glimpses of reality that didn't seem mine;
arms wide open, patiently waiting.

In a dream-like existence, it is easy to confuse
imagination vs. reality;
fiction vs. fact;
past vs. present;
memories vs. history;
rationality vs. intuition;
constant vs. change.

But the world goes by, even
as you are sleeping.
Waking up is difficult but go I must,
for now I know at last.
It is time to leave my castle in the sky
and watch this dream dissolve into dust.

being thankful for each new day

I can't help but feel uplifted each morning when I'm greeted by sights like these. I've always loved the golden warm glow of the morning sun, filtered through the morning mist into beautiful, gentle rays. No matter how bad the day before went, or how stressful today might be, mother nature just has a way to calm my spirits and make me feel that life is beautiful. 

peonies

I've always liked the sweet pastel hues of peonies, and their delicate multitude of layers. Attempted my first freehand watercolour painting of a bouquet of them, completed in less than ten minutes! I'm glad I had the courage to try something I'd envisioned my goal to be: abstract yet sufficiently-detailed, beautiful pieces of art that are calming to the mind. Of course this is nowhere near, but I'm happy I made my first step out into the uncertain, instead of always having to adhere to carefully-planned pencilled outlines and being afraid of making mistakes.

Set our spirits free!

sunrise in bintan

our little escape from reality

focusing on what matters

Today a close colleague of mine told me that she had just tendered her resignation. To be a full-time mum.

I felt really happy for her; I could imagine fully her sense of liberation and anticipation as she looks forward to spending quality time with her baby, especially during the crucial development phase as they start to learn and mould their character and moral values. She said she felt deeply inspired by a Caucasian she saw in Starbucks on a weekday afternoon - watching her baby and the world go by. What a tranquil and blessed feeling!

What surprised myself was that I actually felt envious of her situation -just having the courage to forsake the financial stability of having a job, to focus on what matters and makes one happy. I know that she will be truly happy and it's a beautiful scene in my mind, of her enjoying a cup of tea with baby in tow, and watching the world go by.

I somewhat know that when the time comes, and if our financial situation allows for it, I would be willing to do the same.

I don't know when it began, or how it did, but I've stopped trying to achieve. When not everything is within your control, sometimes it's better not to subject yourself to the stress of the rat race, but to take life slow, and smell the roses along the way.