VESAK DAY

It was Vesak Day two days ago and I was caught in a slight traffic jam in the night on my way to Bishan. There were so many people on the bus to the famous Buddhist temple at Sin Ming Ave. It is a day celebrated by all Buddhists and marks the day when Buddha (Siddharta Gautama) was born, attained enlightenment and entered into Nirvana, a state where one is freed from suffering and rebirth, I think.

It must be such a coincidence for the key events of the Buddha to happen on the same day and I wonder if it is made up for convenience. If not, is there a greater power at play here?

Anyway, the above is not the purpose of this post.

It is just that half my lifetime ago, I was young, unhappy and suffering from my own personal demons. But at least in terms of physical health, I was in good form because I didn't suffer from any bodily discomfort. Youth is not overrated. One does indeed feel rather invincible and indestructible when young. But fast forward two decades, I am now past the 40th mark. All other things are superb but the physical state is worrying. After a slipped disc later, I suffer from occasional bouts of knee pain, I feel tired easily, and of late, the developing presbyopia has affected my vision somewhat. I really need to rely on glasses for far vision. Two nights ago, I had some chest pains again, presumably due to the constriction of chest muscles, I hope. I feel almost as if I have half or two-thirds of my legs in the grave.

After living for so many years, we start to see young stars or people we knew during our time  to start ageing or even dying. Even when I see students wearing the t-shirt from my junior college, I would be so proud yet find it hard to believe that I left the jc many, many years ago. I start to question our mortality. I worry about my parents because if I feel shitty at this age, I wonder how bad they would be feeling at their age.

After reading about countless deaths, the most recent one being that of our local artiste Emma Yong who passed away recently as a result of end stage cancer, I wonder how long more my loved and close ones and I can live. It is a very scary and fearful thought that you see them alive now but they could be gone next. And when one of us is gone, we are gone forever. The idea that we will never, ever see each other again, unless one believes in reincarnation and past lives really freaks me out. I don't know if I can ever get over the feeling of such life and death separation. But I know I am not alone since everyone has to go through such a stage and has to cope with it no matter what.

So, to a certain extent, I am beginning to comprehend the underlying fear that Siddharta Gautama felt when he realized that when there is life, there is death and when there is happiness, there is also suffering. He preached that nothing is permanent in this world and it is so true. And it is precisely because of these emotions and truth that drove him to search for the answer of one's life and existence. He was able to free himself from the cycle of life and death, in his words, and freed himself from suffering.

Sadly, I don't think I will ever be able to attain enlightenment in this lifetime because of my fear of losing my loved ones or of being separated from them by death. The only things that I can and am trying hard to do is really to live my life the way I deemed best for myself, be happy as much as I can and try to let go and ignore the negative things people say or do to me.

BISHAN PARK 2

On the other side of Bishan Park 2 across the road, the residents were gathered around the tentages to kick-start the Community Arts Festival event as part of the PassionArts Month.

One of the first things that attracted my attention, other than the crowd, was the mass of flowering Zephyranthes grandiflora (common name: Pink Rain Lily) in the new landscape beds. I also have not seen the Lagerstroemia indica (common name: Crape Myrtle; Family: Lythraceae) used in our parks for a long time now and I was delighted to see them here.


Almost everyone was carrying umbrellas of a multitude of colours and design in the drizzle. On my way across the overhead bridge to make a quick exit to avoid the heavy downpour, I took photos of the understorey palms e.g. Arenga hookeriana, Johannesteijsmannia lanceolata, Iguanura wallichiana, planted below the crown of the existing clusters of mature trees.

BISHAN PARK 1

I started off this post with a photo of the weed Asystasia gangetica 'Alba' (common name: White Ganges Bluebell; Family: Acanthaceae) for Bishan Park 1 because after the completion of the PUB and NPark's ABC project, this is a wildflower haven. It is a wonderful place to study various species of beautiful wildflowers such as the Melinis repens (common name: Natalgrass, Rose Natal Grass, Natal Redtop; Family: Poaceae/Gramineae).


I love the new look of the park, with numerous meanders and riverside submergent and marginal plants and so on. I mentioned it before that I love water features and the riverscape is so riveting because it reverts to a more natural look reminiscent of the past, before city-scrapers and high-rise buildings come into the picture. The former concretised monsoon drain was hacked away to make way for this high capacity river that caters to those once in a hundred years kind of floods. With heavy rains, the water level will rise and the marginal plants will be temporarily swallowed by the rising waters. When this happens, the river functions as a temporary flood plain and reservoir to hold the swelling waters until the rain ceases and the water levels drop. I think all these are so cool!


Red markers are dotted along the river and sirens will be activated to warn the park users to avoid the swollen channels when the water levels rise to the markers. To cross the river, there are bridges or stone pavers in the water for users to walk on. In fact, this is an excellent habitat for freshwater flora and fauna and organisms and for researchers to study about them. Just look at the clutches of pink eggs of the Apple Snail, even if they are non-desirable. Sometimes, one can see shorebirds wading and feeding in the shallow waters. 


Existing trees such as the Mesua ferrea (common name: Ceylon Ironwood, Indian Rose Chestnut; Family: Clusiaceae) are retained to provide shade and aesthetics and new plant additions are introduced into the landscape to create interest and diversity. 


I was enjoying myself but had to quickly leave the park and hurry to my next destination when the dark clouds in the sky rowed towards my direction and it started to drizzle.

BISHAN PARK - PART 2

These are some of the other interesting plants and animals at Bishan Park:


1st & 2nd photos - Ipomoea triloba
3rd, 6th & 9th photos - Merremia peltata
4th & 5th photos - dragonfly
7th, 8th & 10th photos - Typha angustifolia
15th & 16th photos - Alternanthera sessilis 'Red' (common name: Red Sessile Joyweed, Red Carpet Weed; Family: Amaranthaceae)
18th & 19th photos - Monochoria vaginalis
21st - 23rd photos - I keep forgetting the name of this plant. It came to me some time ago but I forgot the name again. NB on 18 May 11: Ah, it is known as Limnocharis flava (common name: Water Cabbage).