Memory

Memory.

It is such a funny thing. One can be as forgetful as forgetting where he left his socks in a matter of a few minutes after taking it out from the socks drawer (like I always do in the morning), while at the same time very able to reminisce some moments from a very long time ago.

Have you ever placed some emotional attachment to certain songs, smell, music, places or any experience that you've had in the past. For instance, without fail I will always be reminded of my father's soothing voice in the early hours of dusk when I hear someone reciting the surah Ad-Dhuha from the Quran, and almost instantly I will be brought back to the memories of those time.

Or whenever I look at pictures of Blackfriars Bridge in London, coupled with the evergreen song from Wham, Last Christmas, I will be reminded by the lonely feeling of just being betrayed by a friend, to the extent that I could almost feel the cold icy feeling of December winter in London. Oh yeah, I remember those lonely quiet walks I used to have crossing the bridge from school back to my halls of residence as vividly as though it happened only yesterday.

Try listening to the evergreen Hari Raya song from Saloma, and immediately I am transported back to the time when I was 8, celebrating Raya at my late Grandma's house in Serkat, Johor looking forward to show my new raya outfit to my cousins and getting the green packets from my aunts and uncles. And not to mention the recurring episodes of being infected by 'tungau'.

Memories. It's a gift from God to remind us of what we've learnt and how we can improve ourselves from our past experiences. It is for us to appreciate the people whom have touched our lives, for better or for worse.

In memory, love lives forever.

Here's to all the memories and to those who have enriched my life by being part of them.

Memory
(from the musical CATS)

Midnight
Not a sound from the pavement
Has the moon lost her memory?
She is smiling alone
In the lamplight
The withered leaves collect at my feet
And the wind begins to moan

Memory
All alone in the moonlight
I can smile at the old days
I was beautiful then
I remember the time I knew what happiness was
Let the memory live again

Every streetlamp
Seems to beat a fatalistic warning
Someone mutters
And the streetlamp gutters
And soon it will be morning

Daylight
I must wait for the sunrise
I must think of a new life
And I musn't give in
When the dawn comes
Tonight will be a memory too
And a new day will begin

Burnt out ends of smoky days
The stale cold smell of morning
The streetlamp dies, another night is over
Another day is dawning

Touch me
It's so easy to leave me
All alone with the memory
Of my days in the sun
If you touch me
You'll understand what happiness is

Look
A new day has begun