Day 2: My learning (Amirdha)

As I walked down the streets of Little India, I started noticing things that I have never paid attention to or had the chance to consider. In the rush of our daily lives, we have forgotten to look at our country and its many quirks, be awed at our uniqueness. Usually with a purpose, this time I was lost, lost in the many murals, artistic depictions of our history, relating childhood memories with images and statues and seeing a true representation of my identity. I rediscovered the many reasons why I loved Little India, a place I felt at home. More than that, is the various cultures and various races blending into a colorful, almost scenic in view as I passed the Hawker center. This is the true art of life. Despite being an Indian majority, there was incense offering to a Chinese idol. Despite being a Hindu, there was worship towards the Buddhist. This respect and acceptance is what keeps humanity alive. As the old disappear, the new surfaces and that is something inevitable. However, I learnt that our ‘old’ is the path to our new, the gateway to our identity. Therefore, as hard as it is to move on, we find happiness in precious memories. It is also the reason, I realized, why the Singapore government still keeps the old. We need the past to have the present, we need experience for inspiration, we need the foundation for our building. Thus, while it is sad to leave personal comfort, we can share comforts of ‘before’ as a community and still keep the spark alive.

IDENTITY

When lands are reclaimed,

memories are Lost

identities Vanish,

permanently Dislocated

are what we are

As film rolls turn into phones

The sweet freshness of Jasmines

Drained by bees

Banished as myths

Forgotten long,

who we are, the bees Forget

As we Shrivel

The fresh grass squeals in joy

never knowing the Danger of the new

their Flourish hides Heartbreak

Destroys evidence of Destruction to my home

And my Identity

i scramble for new

my child looks at me

asks Where My Childhood Is

with Tears, i say

it is Gone

not warning of the danger of the New