Aboard At A Ship's Helm
the island with the gracious mountain
the tip of the boat inches steadily forward
my heart angled between it
one hour, two hours, three hours
the mountain looms so grand but so far
the boat plods on... and on
bumping against the wave
going up down, up down
the swirling birds, how fortunate they are up there
i put my bored mind into their wings
and travel to realms that excite the mind and senses
of man and wife and children
that run between the trees, shrubs
that flip past my eyes
i put stories into the houses that run
away so fast from view
warm stories of infatuation, continuous love making
where the world revolves around
a man and woman, and their senses
the halcyon day stays as it is
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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A March in the Ranks, Hard Prest
all fought for a reason
the liberators fought, hid
the freedom fighters, fought, hid
ambushed once in a while lopping off heads
that rolled over the sand, grisly blood
oozing down our eyes turning
our hearts cold as ice our hair
raised themselves like armies of
soldiers ready for action
the conflicts rage on in the deserts,
in the towns, in the cities a thousand
miles away which unsettle the souls likewise
a nightmare that has been stealing the light
of our days and our nights from days
the fall of the twin towers in New York
has crushed our cherished dreams
like a bed of wilted roses wrinkled
petals splayed, sprinting listlessly
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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All Is Truth
it is a lie
i am not myself
i am all of nature
the air, water, grass
every thing in everything
i am not myself
how can i be myself
when if the air goes away
i too have to go away
proving that i am but a lie
i am but a cog in the wheel
it is a lie
i am not myself
i am all of nature
the water, the grass, the clouds
how could i be myself
when if the water runs its last drop
i too would too have to make that last pause from the world
those teachers who get me to think i am just
body and bones are liars
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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An Agent I am
in me
the identity of the tree
as i look
and as i talk
i help it send a message
of its existence
so as the next tree
and the next tree
and the next
from the mountain too
i receive a signal
that latches onto my inner self
and every object in sight
the rain, thunder
dance of nature
i am pulled into
the feeling
that each object
arouses in me
a stamp
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Through Your Eyes
through your eyes a spring,
a summer, an autumn, winter
the ingratiating smile your eyes
reflect a river of passion
summer laughter, autumnal walk,
romantic candlelit valentine
the carvort of light and shadow
takes us through the corridors of night
the gems of love sparkle like stars
i gather them onto a page every word
echoes you as we shed layers
of ourselves like divine flowers
like how leaves freeze time to give us
a cherished outing in scarlet and sepia
a sweeping odyssey the light of fall translates so well
a red blazing orb, an entree to a season
so pleasurable and mersmerising to hold onto
through your eyes a spring,
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Acquainted with the Night
shut your eyes and dream
for that is where paradise is
the world is not
as good as a dream, daylight
at least for many
you see them
all over the morning papers
crimes that came out
of the nights
the husband who
in his rage
against a runaway wife
hanged all three children
and himself
terrorising readers
a wayward son
that beat mom to death
for a little money
to spend at the club
the old spinster
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Baby's world
baby's world
the parts i remember
for verses
come in growth
now recollected
for sheer fun
granny dipping her salty forefinger
into my tender mouth
for that budding first tooth
so well imprinted
after so many turbulent decades
mom swinging me to and fro
in a sarong suspended
from a spring tied to a pole
her poor attempt at lullaby
added to my pleasure
my head softly tugged against the floor
up and down, up and down
it went until i slipped into dreamland
and cowpox oh yes
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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Seeing the world with god
i look through my body
at the world, the stars, moon
stars beyond stars
i know there are stars, moon
stars beyond stars too
from my temporary sphere
the aura that shines
from this physical self
the trillion of cells
all the moving atoms,
electrons, protons
the universe inside and out
i look at them
from my infinite self
god the puppeteer
shrewdly playing
the beginning, the end
the two walls
between the human brain
the man innocently walks
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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A Meeting With Despair
the cancer striken
has life ended for him
even before it ends?
the HIV child
has life cheated on him
before it has even began?
whose fault?
the worlds spins
without a care
she cries, nobody cares
the mother who refuses to let
her dead baby go
feeling its warmth
till the numbing cold
jolts her to realisation
that a phase of her life is over
her tears, broken heart
and the eerie cold
the clearcut divider
all the love that wont
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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A Brook In The City
in my heart
a river runs
alluvial, fishes,
leaves, flowers and all
a catfish winds
its way up to the surface
shows its pinkish whiskers
and round mouth
and down in a fleet second
puyu splash
their way down
after a fall
bubble, splash, bubble, splash,
big fish, small fish,
breakdance
down the river
their only way to show
joy and gratitude
for nature's care
like a gymnast
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poem by John Tiong Chunghoo
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