The Perfect Mouthful of a Moment
I have absolutely no idea what I'm going to write about today but let me riff a little first. I write to relax, and certainly not to stress myself unnecessarily to meet the demands of a certain readership. It's a bit like journalling (which I also do, the old-fashioned way with a notebook and fountain pen), but not exactly because blogging, being public, is a little bit more formal.
A blog article is an exploration, a study, a sketch. It's not exactly fit for print publication because it's raw and at times meandering, not having the benefit of good copy-editing. But hopefully it is comprehensible to anyone to happens to chance upon it. And for me, it helps me to clarify my thoughts about certain subjects that occupy my mind.
Blogging, like reading, is an activity which I like to perform at a cafe, where I could observe people and the world. Sometimes I amuse myself with morbid thoughts like how in another hundred years, everyone that I see around me would have been dead, (including yours truly, of course). Every care and concern that they have now would have been totally forgotten.
The aromatic and relaxing Earl Grey that I'm sipping now, the joy that I feel typing these words, the laughter of kids playing around the mock plum blossom tree, the father in shorts pushing the shopping trolley filled with food provisions for the family, the pair of lovers holding hands and playfully teasing each other--that procession of peace, joy and well-being paraded here--gone! Everyone dissolving into bones and ashes, blown by the winds of time.
It is morbid, yet beautiful and sobering. So how shall we live life? Do we try our best to create an enduring mark in this world? What legacy do we want to leave behind? Grateful descendants who would continue the good name of the family and remember you fondly? And perhaps you'll be in heaven then, looking down and seeing everything with great satisfaction?
If that defines you, go on and pursue it with all the zeal, energy and passion that life has blessed you with. Live every moment to the fullest. To the caterpillar, heaven is an infinite expanse of green delicious leaves, where one could crawl and gnaw in content without fear of being eaten by birds. When they become butterflies dancing from flower to flower in the garden of paradise, will they remember their humble beginnings as slimy, crawling tubes of bird-feed?
Since we can't conceptualise what it is like after death, or if there's even a 'life' as we know it, then let's all be good caterpillars, gnawing gratefully on the leafy meal before us, creeping happily in our 2D world, oblivious to the predatory birds that swoop down on us from above.
Misfortune, sickness and calamity could befall any one of us. The whole purpose of celebrating the Lunar New Year is to look forward to another year ahead that's hopefully free from such ill-luck. We can only have the moment we have now and every one of them has to be lived with positive optimism. The fact that you are aware and conscious of doing so, means that you are living life to the fullest. Is there any other way to live?
The challenge is that we are not aware of our every moment of existence. And that's when life becomes miserable. Here, look at this moment. Gone. And this moment. Gone. Are you alright? Are you at peace? If you are, clamp your mandibles on that morsel of moss and gnaw on.
Never lose sight of moment at hand, for misery can only creep in whenever you take your eye off the ball. Hey, this moment is as good as any other. Live it first. Living it fully and wisely will bring forth better quality moments next. But there's no need to think too far ahead. Imagine that this moment is all there is. The next one is a bonus. Infuse this moment with every hope, fervour and passion that you could muster. You will find that they are the sauce and condiments that make this moment that perfect mouthful.
