An unfinished poem from Oct 2015...

Oh! How fleeting it is!

To pour your heart and soul

Only to be trampled and thrown

Oh! How fleeting it is!

Standstill

#10081278 / gettyimages.com

In the stillness of a busy street
In the silence of a million voices
The world is moving on
Yet my time
My time is at a standstill

In the calmness of a roaring sea
In the tranquility of a thundering waterfall
The world is spiralling from under my feet
Yet I feel
I feel I am standing still

Shall I go forward, or shall I go back?
Who can wade through the depths of time?

In the crevice of an open road
In the darkness of shimmering lights
The world is leaping
Yet my mind
My mind is at a standstill

In the whisper of the howling wind
In the quietness of a raging storm
The world is fiercely changing
Yet I am here
I am still here, standing still

親愛的爸爸 (To My Dearest Dad)

親愛的爸爸

感謝您

從不讓我「有求必應」

好讓我學會珍惜我所擁有的

感謝您

從不給我過多的零用錢

好讓我學會積蓄和節儉

感謝您

每年每月不停努力的工作

讓我體會到努力不懈的成果

感謝您

從來沒有要求過我什麼

好讓我能夠闖出我自己所要走的路

感謝您

從來沒阻止我的信仰

好讓我得到了人生最大的福份

感謝您

一路以來那無言的愛

好讓我明白到行動比說話更重要

感謝您

一路以來對我的不離不棄

好讓我生活從不缺乏

感謝祂

讓我有福氣成為您的女兒

讓我成為今天的我

爸，打從心底的感謝您，父親節快樂！

To my dearest Daddy

Thank you

For never fulfilling my every request

Such that I could learn to cherish the things I have

Thank you

For never giving me too much pocket money

Such that I could learn to be thrifty and save up

Thank you

For working hard day and night, month and year

Such that I could see the fruits of hard work and perseverance

Thank you

For never asking too much of me

Such that I could find and walk my own path in life

Thank you

For never stopping me from my faith

Such that I could obtain the biggest blessing in my life

Thank you

For loving me without words

Such that I could learn actions speak louder than words

Thank you

For never giving up on me

Such that my life has never been lacking

Thank God

For the blessing of becoming your daughter

Such that I could become who I am today

Daddy, thank you from the bottom of my heart. Happy Father's Day!

Underneath the fancy clothes
A decaying body
An ugly heart
A wretched soul
Selfishness, anger, malice
Envy, jealousy, and pride
Reeling their ugly heads
Catching me unaware
Is this who I was?
Who I am?
Or what I have become?

But by this I know
Of this I can be certain
I have been saved by grace
And grace alone
An ugly heart
Given a makeover
A wretched soul
Given the light of day
Not because of who I was
Who I am
Or even who I will become

On that last day
His blood
His righteousness
His glory
Shall cover my sins
My guilt
My shame
My decaying body will be no more
My ugly heart no longer be
And my soul
My wretched soul
Will be forever renewed
And forever belong to Him

I Remember Love

This is a song my hubby and I wrote for our parents back when we got married in 2005. The title (not to be confused with Sarah Dawn Finer's or Air Supply's songs) was inspired by a story I read in "Chicken Soup for the Soul"--a book I read back in my high school days. The story, titled "All I Remember", spoke of how the author saw her mother, who had suffered Alzheimer's Disease and passed away, in a vision. Below is a quote from the book...

"I said, 'Oh Mother, I'm so sorry you had to suffer with that terrible disease.' She tipped her head slightly to one side... Then she smiled--a beautiful smile--and said very distinctly, 'But all I remember is love.'

Those words stayed with me a long time. I remember thinking--if ever one day I forget everything, I hope I would remember love.

The love shown to us by our parents and people closest to us is what shapes us into the person we have become today. And this is what this song is about.

***************************

I remember Love
I remember your touch
The warmth of your hands
Made all pain disappear

I remember Love
I remember your gentleness
The sound of your voice
Whispering my name

If you ask me
I remember Love
Etched on my mind
An age-old picture
Whose colours never fade
Only grow richer
With each passing day

I remember Love
I remember your voice
The voice that
Today has slowly become mine

I remember Love
I remember your eyes
That saw me through all these years
Through all joys and pains

If you ask me
I remember Love
Etched on my mind
An age-old picture
Whose colours never fade
Only grow richer
With each passing day

I remember Love
I remember your tears
The tears that showed me
You really cared

We will never forget
All the times we’ve been through
Sunshine or rain
Made us who we are

If you ask me
I remember Love
Etched on my mind
An age-old picture
Whose colours never fade
Only grow richer
With each passing day

I may not remember much
I may not remember much
But I remember love.

(c) Shadow & Hub 2005

*****************

Teardrop in a Mother's Eye

A song I wrote many years ago... Dedicated to all mums, and dads :-)

A baby's first cry
Teardrop in his mother's eye
A tear shed in joy and relief
To celebrate the gift of life

A toddler's first step
Teardrop in his mother's eye
A tear shed in joy and excitement
As the child stumbles into her arms

Oooh... Day by day
The child's feet grew stronger and stronger
And he stands tall
As his mother watches him in pride
With a teardrop in her eye

Then the years went by
Faster than the blink of an eye
There was once a time of separation
And a time to be together again

And yet there came
Times of misunderstanding
When harsh words were spoken in anguish
And the two worlds didn't seem to meet
One took the other's love for granted
And the other wondered when
This child of hers--
Yes, still a child in her eyes--
Will ever understand her love for him

How can one comprehend
The depth of a mother's love
The love she so timelessly gives
And the sacrifices she makes

Through these years
A child may never understand
Until that day
When he sees through his mother's eyes
With that teardrop in her eye

(c) Shadow 2003

Chasing Bubbles

Why do we chase after things that won't last,
Or long for what cannot fulfill?
Why do we yearn for what we do not have,
But give little thought to what we already possess?
Why do we get distracted by what's on the outside,
But not take time to look deep into the beauty of someone's heart?
Why do we live chasing bubbles,
Only to find them pop into nothingness one by one?

There are always times in life
When we wish we could turn back time
Take back a word we've said
Say what we should've said
Do what we should've done

Too often opportunities pass us by
But we are too busy to notice
"Tomorrow will be another day", we say
But who knows what tomorrow will bring?

Day after day, week after week
The world keeps turning
And people keep living
But for some of us
Time stood still today, if only for a moment

Let us weep, mourn, and then be silent
Then rejoice in our shared memories
And when our time comes
May we meet again to share once more...