1 st Issue (October, 2006)

Stories and reflections:

Wondrous Gifts – Reflections at the World’s End

Nancy Ip

Over my head the azure sky, bright as newly washed,
Under my feet the lush earth, supple like mother’s touch.
The Lord is good ,
Bringing me these wondrous gifts.
He has brought you too-
Chung-wai, my sweet room-mate;
Louisa, Alumni’s caring convenor
And Sau, her smiles more than her words;
There is Mak, an untiring leader
With Mike, who quietly goes about a man’s chores
Leaving Lam to capture Nature’s beauty and attend the ladies’ call;
And of course Dhammapala, our spiritual leader
With his Sighalese interpreters
Whose apples and cherries** we cannot relish.
But communication, Professor*** taught
Is beyond the use of words.
So together we meditate, at the World’s End
Trying to penetrate the wall of fog. 
Irresistibly, the mists rise and enfold us in their embrace
Before climbing higher, like kittens breaking loose;
They roll, caper and flirt, faster than Lam’s video shot
Then just as suddenly as they arose, they are gone
And a new sky appears in our eyes.

Author’s notes:
*  A high cliff overlooking a deep wide valley in the National Park of Sri Lanka, famous for its thick fog before mid-morning
** Our nickname for the Singhalese alphabet.
*** Professor Y. Karunadasa insisted language is a poor communication tool.

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