Sands of Tide (a poem)
Tags: poem
I wrote this poem a looong time ago. I like it, so I thought I’d post it here for more people to see. Enjoy.
Sands of Tide:
The tide it crawls
looming to shatter and batter
my sandcastle walls.
build, build, build
sand, sand, sand
I have to fight and protect the people
of this sandcastle land.
The lord of this nation
lauds me for his
land’s salvation
but I see… I see,
as the waves come and go
the tide it comes in
ever so slow.
as the water batters
I keep fighting it back
with sand and stone
but the walls, they moan
cos they know their time is nigh
when the tide is high.
look honey, he is having such fun under the sun.
indeed…
indeed… indeed?
the tide, it feeds my sandcastle walls
one more wave and it will fall…
it did.
I went home.
The tide receded.
Tomorrow, I’ll fight again.
The beautiful life
My twin bro wrote a note on Facebook on the question, “What is it that makes life beautiful?”. I just had to share it.
—
The true feat of humankind is not to be selfish: a game of survival just like animals hunting down prey, but in the human venture of sharing, inspiring and helping others. That to me is what makes life beautiful.
A smile, an unexpected thank you and touch of empathy can change lives. Just thinking that someone is sharing something with you is inherently a great prize and you should be privileged, even if you don’t get the correct message. The beautiful part is the the attempt not the content.
Often this is what seperates those that merely live life and those that go and grasp opportunities. They know they might not always achieve the best results, but they tried. The best reward is seeing those people achieve what they set out to overcome and standing back up when they failed with a brimming smile, happy that they tried and learned something from their attempt.
That is why one has to embrace the brave act of being selfless. The ego is a survival mechanism and if one can overcome that you have truly transcended and showed to yourself that you are human. Often one looks for signs in life to show that you are human, something that sets you apart from other animals, because you are lost in this field of primal desires, but look around.
The essence of human beings are all around you, the sharing of an intimate secret, the attempt of trying to convey a experience, a whisper, the extra tight hug on a Monday morning, a song that one shares, holding hands, a cherished moment together, talking: giving something to others that does not necessarily benefit you.
That is why the communion of two lovers is the penultimate feat of humankind. They give themselves selflessly to share an intimacy that is unparalleled among earth’s animal kingdom. It defines the meaning to be human: love.
That to me is what makes life beautiful: the shedding of the ego to share experiences with unconditional perseverance and selfless caring for others. When you understand that life is not merely yours, but what you do to others, you will realize that you can be anywhere in this world and you will still feel the exact same if you don’t have a person to share your experiences with.
So next time you are sitting next to someone looking at the stars and you are in awe at this beautiful planet we inherit say thank you to the person sharing it with you, because without them your life will be a bland endeavour. That is the beautiful life.
The Coming of MyAge – a short story
Written by me and edited by Niel de la Rouviere
–
“Do you think she is ready?” I prompted my wife who sat at the end of the table.
“I don’t know! How does anyone know when it’s the right time?” she said while she fidgeted with her hair.
“Google is just saying what we both know: it’s inevitable. The only question is when?”
We both sat in silence…
“I was thirteen, and she’s now thirteen,” I told her.
“I know, I know… But are we ready to accept that she is old enough? It is after all more something we have to accept too.”
I got up and started to make some coffee.
“We are the second generation that has to put up with this. I just can’t imagine how our parents decided it!” I gestured while dropping sugar into my coffee.
“I know… I think we should ask: is she ready to accept that we are all just human? Is she ready to accept us? We are her pillar. Is she strong enough to handle it?”
“I don’t think she’ll mind really. I’m sure her desire is just to check out if her parents are indeed ‘real people’. All her friends probably know stuff about their parents.”
“Yes, but do we need to show her that? Ask yourself that Jason!”
“I am! I… am… I’m ready to let my relationship with my daughter be taken to the next level. I mean, everyone knows everything of anyone else today anyway. I know what Sally had for breakfast, who she dated three years ago and I even know how she became our neighbour without even talking to her. It’s inevitable, Mary!’
With another sip of my coffee, I somehow knew that I had struck some chord on the way to solving this new problem that was suddenly plaguing countless parents across the planet.
“I don’t want my daughter to know what I did in my college years! I don’t want her to see how we partied the night away. Don’t even start with the flirting with Maxwell from high-school… just… no. Not yet.”
“What you are describing is the way of life. Every child thinks that their parents don’t know what they are doing. Before social networks, our parents stood on pedestals. They were scared… scared that if their behaviour somehow became acceptable, the chance that we would get hurt would be greater.”
Lisa stared into my eyes. She had a weird frown; a cross between something angry and worried.
“It has to happen sometime I guess…” She gave a sigh while staring at her empty coffee. “I guess, the sooner it happens, the earlier we can become not just a family in the traditional sense, but a tightly knit unit of… friends. No, that isn’t the right word. Umm… not equals, but companions.”
The sweet taste of that last sugary sip of coffee reflected just how glad I am that in these times it is easier to share who and what we are.
“I will go tell her tomorrow that she can get her Facebook account and add us.”
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