I remember way back in Secondary One, I had to learn poetry as part of our Literature class. I was very weak in English and Literature then but I was forced to memorise poems by the teacher. One of the poems that still stick in my mind is Leisure by W H Davies. Frankly I did not quite understand what the poem really meant then, even after the teacher has explained many times. I have appended it here for your reading pleasure. I must say that the poem makes a lot of sense to me for some time now.
Leisure - W H Davies
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
No time to see, when woods we pass,
Where squirrels hide their nuts in grass.
No time to see, in broad daylight,
Streams full of stars, like skies at night.
No time to turn at Beauty's glance,
And watch her feet, how they can dance.
No time to wait till her mouth can
Enrich that smile her eyes began.
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs
And stare as long as sheep or cows.
What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
I made some friends over the past few years. Most of these friends are simple people. By simple I don't mean they are simple minded. On the contrary, quite a bunch of these friends are people who are very carefree, who are at ease with who they are, who have many aspirations but yet not ambitious, who enjoy the varieties in life, and who are able to sit back and relax and enjoy the good things in life. To others, they may be a bunch of lazy people, who seem to waste their time doing 无聊 (worthless) things. But when you ponder over this poem above, you may start to realise that there is some truth in what WH Davies is saying. In life we do need to take time off to do nothing, to stand and stare : across lakes, over meadows, from atop a mountain, into a stream, out to the ocean, up to the stars, down into the valley, and perhaps top it up with a nice cup of aromatic coffee or a glass of vintage wine. Amidst the hustle and bustle of our hectic life, we all need to stop the earth from rotating and stand and stare!
So when was the last time you stand and stare - not at pretty women and handsome men but at nothing? If you have not done it before, or have not done it for a long time, perhaps it is time for you to time-out and just stand and stare. In Singapore, we may not have lakes and meadows and mountains and valleys for us to stand and stare peacefully, but I am sure you would be able to find many perfect place to do just that. Perhaps tonight look out from your balcony (if you have one) or window, and stare at the stars (hopefully the haze is not too bad tonight :p), or during the weekend go find a place to relax and do nothing, but to stand (sit/lying down is fine too) and stare.
I always try to. Do you?
1 comment:
Yup, it is true that some things which once seemed illogical or absurd to us, can make lots of sense today. I guess people grow and people change, our preference, our likes and dislikes, the things we treasure and pursue evolves too... as we mature... or regress...
Many people are caught in a rat race, going faster and faster, trying to keep up with everyone else, only to realise years later, that they end up at the same place where they started, because they had been going round and round in a circular track! So, are you in a mad rat race too? You can be in one without realising, you know...
Surely, it is important to take time off, to rest and rejuvenate, to admire the flowers, smell the freshly cut grass, hear the chirping from birds and enjoy the shade provided by trees. These things are all around us, but we can be so engrossed in our pursuit of, for eg. material wealth, we become oblivious to these simple pleasures in life.
I may not take time off to stare into space/nothing, it will be more of resting and enjoying the beauty of nature. It will also be a time of pondering and rekindling the passion and hope in life which many of us can lose sight of ... searching the reason for our being... Lest I live, but not really living...
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