Author: rike jokanan

This song, Beloved,
Sky lantern blinking at me
To read your message?
I don’t read it. I sing it
To thank you for being you.

—

Some story is just so beautifully bitter that can’t be read, can only be recited as a musical poem — just like your story.

Some love stories must end because of greater reason. I wish you lovers, fiancées, wives, husbands, parents, children, best friends and all others broken hearted happiness. Maybe the greater reason is your own self — yes, must be!

Salaam. 💝

beautiful song to lament a lost lover; and also it is not easy to lose a father or a father to be – may all beings be happy

Home Early

Who doesn’t love laughing should not be given holiday. 😛

Mother: Dear, you are home earlier than usual today?

Child: I was the only one who could answer the teacher’s question and I was allowed to leave the class earlier. He also gave me 3 days off.

Mother: That is incredibly great! That’s mama’s child! I’m proud of you! What was the teacher’s question though?

Child: Who threw the chalk to my head?

Mother: $&@“/!?#~

—

(from Pinterest) no no definitely not this cute girl 😁

Where’s Mr Sun?

Learning, Poetic

Mr Sun’s hiding
Behind curtains of colours.
This brain cheats the eyes.

—

Ah! What is before these eyes isn’t always what is. It doesn’t matter; although it is not what is, it is still what is when it is clear what is not.

Bumpy road of saying no before finally saying yes is a long battle, a long journey to win the best throne of this heart. Know it and accept it.

Salaam. 💝

is it the ability to capture the horizon or the limitation of man-made lens that makes the shot scenery not as stunning as when viewed with these eyes? Or these very eyes get cheated?

I Slowly Spell Your Name

Learning, love, Poetic

Though not a true ID,
Your name ships all senses to
An existence.

A name that I spell slowly,
A name representing silence and unattendance,
Almost ignorance.

Is
Your name
A password
To where a gap between real and unreal resides?

Is
Your name
A padlock
With which a visitor busily matches the key?

Is
Your name
Sugar leaf
With which a cup of tea gets sweetened with its dissolving?

Is
Your name
Coffee powder
Which settles at the bottom of a cup after its releasing caffein and acidity?

Is
Your name
A myth
That resembles history?

Tell me
The story of
Your name.

Your name
That
I slowly spell
Every time 
A face flickers
Around this nerve system.

—

Indeed a name isn’t a true ID. The ID is more than just the given name.

Namamu Kueja Pelan-Pelan by Pusakata

A Fool’s A Fool

Learning, life, This Person

Disclaimer: Please don’t take it seriously. Putting funny tone when reading it will do some favour to enjoy it.

AF (a fool, or whatever you want): Hello!
G (God, not ghost): Hello! What now, funny bit?
AF: Look at me. I’m capable of cooking. I know how to do laundry. I can clean toilet. I can make the room. I take care of plants. I can put smiles at the most bitter person…. I’m an excellent one! Am I not?
G: And?
AF: What about making me an owner of a good hotel? Or at least a small nice clean affordable Airbnb? I will manage it myself.
G: Briliant!
AF: So it’s a deal?
G: Oh, wait, dear sneaky bit.
AF: What’s that?
G: Do you remember when you had food poisoning? What did the hotel do?
AF: They arranged a doctor and ended up paying for the bill as their food was the cause.
G: Do you remember a friend complained about the bed sheet with some weird thing? What did the hotel do?
AF: They upgraded to higher class with original booking price.
G: Do you remember when your peach pants accidentally got some unexpected colour stain?
AF: They compensated unnecessarily extra.
G: Do you remember….
AF: Stop. You are trying to tell me I’m not capable of doing all those?
G: I’m not saying it. It was more questioning you whether or not you are willing to do all those to strangers. Sometimes the bitterest snobbish strangers.
AF: No.
G: Then? What now?
AF: Alamak…. Why is it always difficult talking to you? Amen.

—

It is sometimes not fun doing the talk but it is always leaving a funny feeling of being thankful and content. Human being!

Thanks for making me a human being though. Hey, God! Are you still there? Sorry, sorry, sorry…. 😘

Alhamdulillah.

Long Battle

Learning, life, love, Poetic, This Person

This love, Beloved,
A battle to win the heart
Zooming in and out—

—

How distant are we? Never away, just the lines and dots that project substantial distance. Once perspective is well understood, near far is never an issue as all are cluster of objects in the same dimension.

Yet how well is perspective projection can be accepted by this foolish brain?

Not easy to do it well. It is to play the focal length. It is a long battle to win the heart; is it my heart? Or your heart? Or both? It depends on what the computation is based. Can only wish it is based on mathematics that contains literature for accuracy without beauty kills hope. And living without hope is walking zombie.

💝

red torii: balance that stands out, mercury painted to battle the climates, poetic geometry

Grey Cloud

Grey cloud, Beloved,
Hanging shelter in hot days,
A lock to stay home—

—

Minimum cooking, maximum laundry on holiday

🧺

mung bean, sago pearl, dried lemon basil seeds with red ginger and palm sugar on a cloudy day 🥰

Daydreams of A Lover

You
Have got everything:
A sweetest smile,
A cheery hello,
A loving look,
A warm hug,
A good kiss
All in loving care.

Yet in all daydreams of closeness and connection….

I wish to give
You a warm kiss,
Yet impossible
As
You are too high
Up the sky;

I hope to give
You a pretty daffodil
Yet unlikely
As
You are too disguised
Behind the curtain;

I want to spread for
You a good breakfast
Yet too early
As
You wake up too late
In another day;

I want to paint
You a red torii
Yet too trivial
As
You know torii much
Better than me;

I am writing
You secret love poems
Yet in vain
As
You don’t even care
They exist.

Beloved,
Breath is with what I count life.
Breath is in what I save love.
Breath is on what I paint faith.
A warm kiss,
A pretty daffodil,
A good breakfast,
A red torii,
And secret love poems
Have livened this breathing
Although
You have got
A sweetest smile,
A cheery hello,
A loving look,
A warm hug,
A good kiss
All in loving care.

Beloved,
I only wish
You behind the curtain
See me breathing
For and with
You.

—

This long weekend of Eid Al-Adha is turning to brighter space with slow breathing, daydreaming and chili party.

Happy Eid Al-Adha, family and friends. Hope we are blessed with closeness and connection with the Source of Love.

Alhamdulillah 💝

RC Gorman’s – what an inspirational picture for chili lovers 😁

Malaikat Juga Tahu

favourite song written by favourite writer sung by favourite singer conducted by favourite conductor – perfect for a rainy day

Postcards

Learning, love, Poetic

I’ll send
You postcards.
Cards with white flower
On white paper
And some messages
On white ink
That will glow
When
You bring it to the dark.
Only
You and I know what it is
Until one day
You bring the light
To burn it or frame it.

—

Dear you…. 💝

postcards draft for friends – not perfect, yet purely poured from the heart

Been Through



This cart, Beloved,
Been through deserts and oceans,
It now resides here.

—

Sometimes she just doesn’t want any. It’s just enough to be what is. Sitting down, ignoring planned route, forgetting prescribed destination, letting other travelers pass by with no hallo or hi, enjoying silence, remembering what’s not describable through resting senses….

…. Not anything….

…. Of nothing….

…. In everything….

One by One

Wishing, Beloved,
Upon a star where dreams sit
Waiting to be picked
One by one to the bucket
Before the steps reach the home—

—

Many dreams look so much near. Places to go on earth displayed in Pinterest lengthen the list and be a good escape for mind every weekend before dosing off. Can only wish that the lengthened list lengthens the life, pushing the EOL later and later— 🤗

Some dreams can’t even be described…. You are as near as far away…. 🙃

Happy weekend. Oops long weekend.

next year, next year…. please 🥰 want to stand under those trees and greet the women who carry loads on their heads! beautiful! 💝

Sketches

Learning, life, Poetic, Those People

Sketches, Beloved
Turning imagination
To the sensible
That won’t last longer than life;
Let go from the very start—

—

Sometimes I asked myself “what will happen to all these sketches when I die?” 🫥 Not easy to answer until I realised what I have done to most of my mistakes: let go.

🤡

orchid – in progress; let go from the very start

Mirror

Learning, Poetic, This Person

Mirror, Beloved.
Look back while looking forward!
Sigh. Blank. Mute. Smile. Shine.

—

Acceptance has gathered laughter, smile, speechlessness, emptiness, anger into a frame with a figure looking into a mirror at the same time seeing what is situated behind.

Beloved, the past is the past but it is what has molded a present person. It should be forgiven, it should not be forgotten.

Thank you, yesterday! Hello, today! Welcome, future!

lovely reservoir — under the clean night sky, with the bestest friend of mine, my own self 💝

Cheese!

Learning, This Person, Those People

Two friends are chatting under a tree.

Friend #1: I think God takes care of us very well.
Friend #2: I think God stopped working after creating us.
Friend #1: You just don’t know.
Friend #2: I just don’t care.

Suddenly a lightning strikes not far from the tree.

Friend #1: Cheese!!!
Friend #2: What the hell are you doing?
Friend #1: I told you! You don’t know! God just took a picture of us gossiping.
Friend #2: @&@$#%^*~


(this is a very common joke among Indonesians, modification is applied here)

—

It is the way some crazy heads respond to what’s striking around them. 🤩

Beads of Pray

Counting beads of pray,
An echoed name flows away
Through silence of heart.

—

Have you ever prayed so silently? No one can hear. Only beads of pray click. A remembrance of love that is unseen. Beyond the ocean and beyond existence—

Literature is a limited tool to disclose ideas and emotions; not accurate enough to shoot one heart. Math is sharp to operate a complex equation; not sweet enough though to state naked truth.

With what then should I count this reality between two lovers? Beauty or precision?

Only beads of pray is whispered silently. Who knows the river will sail this soft voice along its flow introducing it to the estuary that escorts it to the ocean where winds push the current following the North Star to meet with you.

Salaam.

Sincerely,

from a tiny heart wrapped in a peaceful morning

Bright Red

Scarlet, Beloved,
Traveling in a canal
Brings blossom to life.

—

Flamboyan tree is magnificently stunning, all part of it— trunk, branches, twigs, leaves, scarlet flowers and seed pods, no exception.

Seeing pictures of flamboyan trees with blossoming scarlet flowers feels like my blood gets healthier and flows more smoothly. Or maybe it’s just a coincidence that I’m being healthy now and seeing the pictures. So, it is the blood not the scarlet flowers causing me feel alive! ☺️

Alhamdulillah. Monday is well done. A satisfying healthy day!

Note: Blood colour isn’t always bright red. It won’t be blue though.

Salaam.

Flowers Bouquet

Bouquet, Beloved,
A bunch of symbols arranged
Through fragrance and hues.

—

Amaryllis: strength and determination

Daffodil: honesty, truth and forgiveness

Eucalyptus: division of the underworld, earth and heaven (Aboriginal wisdom); inner and outer strength, leadership

Gladiolus: faithfulness and integrity

Lily of the valley: sincerity and joy

Sunflower: loyalty and unconditional love

Tendril: growth, softness, flexibility (Javanese wisdom)

Flowers Bouquet in water colour; 60%, waiting for the liquid frisket to block some colours before completion

Mother of Pearl

Deep dive, Beloved,
To where soft bodies guard light
Wisdom of the dark

—

Nowhere is better than within, where price tag is no longer a concern, where silence and acceptance is currency, where no one looks evil or harmless, where only gratitude and peace reside, where no colour distracts, where pain and joy are blended to ecstatic reality….

….where I finally get sleepy 😁

Salaam.

the no-longer-cost-fortune-yet-still-cost-a-wisdom gemstone called pearl is produced through 100’s of layers of mineral secreted by mollusk to cover around irritants that enter its shells – if a soft body of mollusk can do it, how can’t we human beings?

Reading

Reading, Beloved
Deciphering messages
Sent by soul that shines—

—

Sending my warm regards to all readers in the world. Hope we’re all blessed with wisdom and fun from reading and what is read.

Salaam…. 🙏🏼

‘ve always wanted to read this book but never happens; maybe my 5 people are not those in his book 😎 skipped (maybe forever)

this writer has fascinated me with his crazy ideas about children’s life; wish I could write that way 😍 paid!

sorry, Keanu; many not even in my kindness list 😘 you’re not my guide, just a man that has charmed me with your kindness & bearded face 😂 finished reading in the bookstore

Kinokuniya SG – calm Saturday afternoon after Japanese class with Honda Sensei

Welcome

Learning, love, Map It!, Poetic

Welcome, Beloved,
To where you belong. The home
That keeps missing you.

—

They are welcoming me home with love ♥️

the I-thought-you-would-have-died-when-I’m-home one 😘

Flowers

Learning, Map It!, Poetic

Flowers, Beloved,
Dipping her days in colours,
Leaving her in awe—

—

Thanks God for the flowers around which have helped me much to be in good mood. Suddenly get the urge to ritually pray and thank for all the blessings sprinkled on to me—

Weekend, bring me to Masjid Sultan. 🥰

rugosa roses, tiny dots that entertain 💝

that day was as tough as bougainvillea; 39 degree Celcius! 🥵

crape myrtle (bungur China in Indonesia) not crappy at all

a bunch of lotus flowers for SGD1.4, they said 😍

Hungry

Learning, love, Poetic

Hungry, Beloved,
For love yet the bucket’s full.
The love though won’t stop.

—

Was so hungry! Hungry or greedy me? Maybe greedy but just couldn’t tell people “I’m greedy I could eat a horse”. 🤤

Good Time