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ROMANCE AT A SEA SIDE, PULAU TIOMAN

 Dr. Lim Keng Huat  ([email protected])

 

      Lights of varying luminosities unevenly dotted the sky. Scattered islands of cloud festooned across the horizon. They appeared immobile, but within each cluster, there was perpetual motion: incessant changes of patterns and densities. In the dimmed light, shimmering waves danced their silvery reflection, accompanied by the rumbling beat of moving water. The dawn was indeed serene. There was neither sun nor the silhouette of the moon to be seen. As the sky became brighter, the stars dimmed their numbers, and suddenly vanished totally – gone together with the darkness!

        Waves rode on waves towards the shore, and as they rolled, they roared and surged, then dissipated and spumed at the beach. From afar, the ocean appeared deep green, shedding off its darker reflection nearer to shore.  Towards the beach, the water regained its pristine beauty: it was crystal clear, so clear that one could feel the velvety sand underneath it.

       Fishes of brilliant color and display swam among the corals. One swam with them! There was immense joy. One could hear scream of joy: so spontaneous, so rapturous, so liberating that they chased all thinking away! There was this out-pouring of feeling, so lively and yet so silent.

       The flow was interrupted by a commotion. A strayed diver surfaced with his catch and corals. He was strangely proud of his accomplishment, unaware of the disgust around him. The urge to possess and to claim petty ownership was indeed strong. His demeanor was likened to the proverbial rich person unable to pass through the head of the needle.

       The transformation of the sky, oceanic waves, and all conditional phenomena

are in perpetual change; reality may thus appear illusory. Even feeling, emotion and thought need to adjust, adapt and accommodate to such changes, for impermanence is an essential characteristic of life. Change implies opportunity, options and risks, which are often difficult to endure. In a globalize world, change implies more than seeking for better “cheeses”, for what is perceived as “good” or “bad” may change their meaning with time and geography. It is more than the awareness and sensitivity of balancing one racial or religious predicament against another. It is the practical wisdom of knowing what’s likely or unlikely to change, and the willingness to surrender archaic belief, that is, however, more relevant in daily living.