Friendships are nourished
With thoughtful words and kindness
And Time - sweet, sweet Time.
#771 On The Three of Us
In between the moments of silence
When words are not spoken
And the seconds fall away like dying leaves
I say a quiet prayer of thanks
For this brotherhood
This fragile web of comradeship
This great gossamer bond of friendship.
#728 On Lies and Friends
Sometimes, with friends
All they want to hear are
Lies that they need to believe in
Lies that won’t leave them broken
Lies that only a friend can tell.
#652 On The Regrets of a Middle-Aged Man (Letters to a Young Friend)
Dear friend,
You asked me about Regrets:
All I can say is that my own Youth,
Like that of many others, has had its trials.
I've wrestled with the shifting sands of my own flailing Truths;
The shifting quicksands of my own lies and denials.
In this time, my years of unrelenting middle age,
I look at my youth with no small amount of wonder;
My younger self was no daredevil, nor sage;
And now my life's laid bare to Time's plunder.
And yet, what's done is done - I'll own it all,
We are all servants in His majestic thrall.
#624 On Being Your Jiminy Cricket
Am I your Jiminy Cricket
The voice of your frail, dimmed conscience?
The one you turn to
When you need the strength
To be the person
You’ve always known you ought to be?
Or am I just another member of
Your sprawling audience?
An unwitting witness to your witless schemes
The unremitting pursuit of
Your faded dreams?
#551 Tentang Pemergian Seorang Sahabat
Malam ini aku dikejutkan
Dengan berita pemergianmu, sahabat
Terlalu lama kita tidak bersua
Dan kerinduan itu kini takkan terubat
Kau telah pergi meninggalkan kami
Malam ini aku mengenangkan
Satu demi satu ingatan padamu, sahabat
Terlalu lama aku bertangguh untuk berjumpa
Kini saatnya sudah terlewat
Kau telah pergi ke alam abadi
Damailah di sana, sahabat
Kita bakal ketemu nanti.
(buat sahabatku Abas, moga Allah merahmati)
#489 Tentang Kekejian Belanja Member Makan
Keji adalah
Belanja member makan
Pastu claim bayar :(
#440 On Politesse
With open heart I reach past smiles contrived
To venture past the void of hearts unknown
To pierce into the place where lives are lived
To risk unproven friendships overthrown
My olive branch not overtly dismissed
But glanced aside with mannerly resist.
#433 On Echoes of Friendships Past
Our friendships echo loud through muddled Time
And even in the darkest night, alone
The memories come alive in gentle rhyme
For all our sins, these warm ties do atone
And even though our lives now barely meet
I treasure this: no lies, no bald conceit.
#432 On Friends and Turkish Tea
After all that has been said and done
I am glad that we are still friends
Even if we only see each other
Once every few months, these days
The Turkish tea reminds us
That friendships can transcend time
And place.