Category: This Person

My Heart Is

Learning, life, love, Poetic, This Person
They have said 
I am lost.

What I see…
I am in a forest away
From comfort of thought.
I am not in a castle
In which mind is blunted.
My heart finds home
In which 25 prophets 
And 1000 saints
Have found the paths.

It is a way
That all Prophets and Saints bless.

I am home
With the flow
That brings petals
To where fragrance blends
With clarity of fluids,
Various fluids
Gliding to a vast ocean
Of love.

——

i don’t care anymore what i am called by them — Muslim? Alhamdulillah, Sufi? Subhanallah, Buddhist? Masya Allah

what i am sure of is that my sutra is sutra of love with which all prophets and saints have travelled, whatever religions they have been associated with

thank you

💕

Two

Learning, life, love, Poetic, This Person
There are two gateways
To enter one gallery
Full of works of art.

——

my left side of face is sadder, bitter and negative with which i’ve been made more and more accepting to unwelcoming sides of life 💕

my right is happier, sweeter and optimistic that has persuaded me to be more and more letting go of what is not working after some good deed 💕

whatever unpleasant and pleasant things others say about me, i feel complete with some gap that might not need to be bridged simply to show that imperfection is a perfect gift in life 💕

Note: the picture at the bottom is batik scarf designed by Dudung Aliesyahbana, a batik maestro from Pekalongan, Central Java

Books To Breathe

Learning, Poetic, This Person, Those People
Have a seat, dear friends.
Breathe this home before our chat.
Leave the heat outside.
Pages of shapes and colours,
Tell them to bring their best selves.

——

Coffee table books are good to make guests relaxed before longer chat with me and at the same time to lay foundation of the chat. Not all guests visit me to chill out; some do to ask for help that might make it difficult for them to start a convo, so some flash reading can help them break the ice and sometimes for the host to loop back to the ice breakers when strategising to refuse unreasonable requests. 😉

Just fyi, some people don’t easily give up “selling misery to get a buy-in”, so be softly tough; one exquisite coffee table book might not even work.

About coffee table books

coffee table books taking turn monthly to welcome my friends

this book contains reproduced masterpieces of world’s well-known painters; the characters in the original paintings are all replaced by cats

all reproductions are by Susan Herbert

thank you, Ma’am for your art! 🙏🏼

here is very few from a total of 140 illustrations

The Beguiling of Merlin — Edward Burne-Jones, 1872-7

A Couple — Pierre Auguste-Renoir c. 1868

The Milkmaid — Johannes Vermeer c. 1660

The Child’s Bath — Mary Bassat, 1893

this is originally not a coffee table book but i will make it one — currently reading it 👏🏼

always suitable anytime so it will be forever on the table accompanied by the monthly one — only women have this power 😊

Relax

Learning, Poetic, This Person
What is said
Can be misunderstood.
What is shown
Can be misinterpreted.
What is written
Can be misled.

Only those who clarifies
Will be clear.

Relax.

——

sometimes you just want to relax whatever whoever thinks of you 😊 ‘coz only those who really clarify will understand — those who guess too much will lose so much 😎

the seats

the door

the aisle

Caution

Learning, Poetic, This Person
Caution, Beloved
Walking down the hill with care.
Climbing hasn’t ended.

——

going downstairs is oftentimes more risky than upstairs — my father’s last words to me before he died was “…. be cautious”

Borrowed Heaven

Learning, This Person
All these are borrowed,
I’ll have to return all.
Let me borrow humbly,
So all won’t make me fall.

So much has been blessed to,
So much has been given to,
So much has been here now for,
This life.

It’s all what is,
And I accept.
I give up all struggles
To travel light.

Thank
You.

——

The Corrs

Beauty

Learning, Poetic, This Person
When I was a girl
I admired my mother’s beauty;
Being a juvenile,
I admired my sisters’ and girlfriends’;
When adult,
I admired my idols’;
Getting more mature,
I admired flowers’;
All of which forgetting
The beauty in front of the mirror:

Now I admire no one’s,
But I appreciate everyone’s;
All through realising
The beauty reflected in the mirror.

——

beauty after beauty

beauty refreshed

tell your beautiful self “Thank you!”

Sweetness of Heart

Learning, Poetic, This Person
My life is sugar cane
That I chew in summer day
Before singing.

My life is honeycomb
That I suck in rainy day
Before whistling.

My life is a bowl of ice cream
That I dig in on a quiet day
Before humming.

My life is sweetness of heart
That I choose
Before resting.

——

i wish to be back someday to enjoy it in summer 💕

Surrender

Bob, Learning, life, love, Map It!, Poetic, This Person
With no white towel
I surrender
To the realm that hugs this heart.
I am water flowing
With no effort
To the ocean that waits for this mind.
How would this name
Say no to a call that sings love songs?
I submit everything
With a smile
And grace.
Body, mind, spirit and soul—

-

Jun 10, 2023
when the air taps my whole reality
with everything subtle and overwhelming

——

please excuse my strong arms 😀

after the Tapa Brata my classmates and I are still escorted to meditate everyday of 60 minutes for 90 days

it should be 36th day today but i only have 33 days in which i am able to do full meditation — in fact my doctor was quite surprised that unbelievable progress is indicated in better numbers from the laboratory test result after i meditate regularly — happy tears 🥹

my health is much better with calmness that is on track and harmonious thought that builds gradually

i’ve registered to next level Tapa Brata next Sep so i can get more benefits to help certain issues in this beloved aging body and to strengthen my mind

can’t wait to meet with the wise teachers who guide us and humble caretakers who help us with daily needs in Forest Island 🥰

i don’t know for sure what i can share from my achievement through meditation yet maybe someday i can help others reduce health complaints at low cost — i’ve always wanted to cure diseases with fragrance and herbs; my high intelligent friends said “pseudoscience, a crap wrapped in fancy paper”, i said “it doesn’t matter at least i can help them feel calmer and think positive”

all what happen in my life are like magic both the unexpected and expected — i hope my meditation brings more good magical celebrations to me and my beloved family and friends

and all…

May All Beings Be Happy

💕

Free Weekend Class

Learning, life, love, Map It!, Poetic, This Person, Those People

I started teaching this morning. Overall I’ll be teaching English, soft skills, art and hopefully someday Japanese. I partner with my best friend to establish a free weekend class for the kids and youth in her small library in south area of Yogyakarta. It is a community support that we humbly provide for a better leadership and communication skills of our young generation.

We have very very very limited budget but we commit to help the community not only to welcome but also to design bright future.

Pray for us. 

May all beings be happy.

children class this morning — very very basic communication skills of reading, writing, listening, speaking — what a sweet fun session! 💝

these two girls were the youngest students today 💝

Score

Bob, Learning, love, Poetic, This Person
Dear, oh
Dear….
You came from
Nowhere
Destroying my scores!

No wonder the soundtrack of my stories
Became messy.

Go eat fish,
My sheets won’t suffice your belly.

Cat has no logic,
Only fun.

——

i used to live with a rescue cat, i named him Bob; he was more interested in tearing my paper apart or sitting on my laptop to playing with his toy or sleeping on my bed 💝

Bob in his dream of being my boss 😁 back in 2010

may all beings be happy 🙏🏼

Magical Days

Learning, love, Poetic, This Person
Today I saw magic
Warmly greeted my throbbing head.
“How deep is your love?” Said she.
“To whom?” Asked I.
“Does it matter?” Said she.
And so I was magically charmed
By these heart beats
Chanting a repeated naive rhyme
About how nice I’ve been breathing.

——

only those who know the death is just an inch away can do this wholeheartedly 💝

Dreams, Given Up?

Learning, Poetic, This Person
Is she giving up?
She’s waiting for the right time.
Just another leap—

——

💝

played Coldplay all day today as if their concert is happening in my living room 😁

gave up the queue because my medical treatment on May 19 was much more important; if i am healthy, i still can work to earn money for the next concerts somewhere else 🙏🏼 happy watching, all ticket war winners! you deserve your strategy whatever it was

Woodpecker’s Messages

Learning, Poetic, This Person

She has heard bird news,
Sending messages
Through Morse Code.
Dots, dashes, spaces—

She has heard numbers, words, punctuations,
Telling stories
About no hope.
Acceptance, letting go, moving on—

She has heard songs, poems, winds,
Springing in heart
Warmly and gently.
Future is brighter only with clarity.

She has heard a woodpecker
Reminding her of signals and signs
In every dance of nature
To be enjoyed and understood.

She has heard of you
Giving blocks and traps
To redirect her to her own path
To happiness.

She has heard of heaven
Approving whatever she’d do
As long as she’s happy and safe
Without disturbing life.

She has heard
Dews imbuing morning to refresh,
Twilight whispering night to rest.
Life is truly a woodpecker’s Morse Code.

She has heard
And she closes her eyes,
But not ears
As long as she’s happy and safe.

Thank you, Michael Lai for again allowing me to use your poetic pictures to illustrate a poem of mine that has been poking me since forever. 🙏🏼

Bay Woodpecker Pecking a Hole in the Tree (4 Photos)

As Long As You Are Happy

Learning, Poetic, This Person
Life is light
When she dances
And sings.
As long as you are happy,
She says.

—

smile, dance and sing! 😀 unbeatable when she takes good care of the child within 💝

Sanctuary

Learning, Poetic, This Person
In sanctuary,
Where birds from paradise sing,
Clear mirror reflects—

—

Out of office is set meaning that work is safe-kept for a while. Only silence remains. Even my boss and my mother— two whose calls I’ll never reject in normal situation can’t contact me. They know where I am so they won’t contact me. 😎

All my postings will be automatically scheduled starting May 1.

I pray that you all be blessed with good life.

Salaam.

💝

my goddess, Saraswati 💝

just wanna be offline for a while 🌸

i love to be with those knowing how to reflect me and themselves clearly ♥️

it is safe 💝

accompanied by two paradise birds in Ubud before starting my sacred silence tomorrow in Baturiti

Cuts and Bruises

Learning, life, love, Poetic, This Person
All cuts and bruises
Paint a life of a blossom
Before it decays.

—

i was so young and innocent, a loved friend of many, a hated enemy of some — i was so much blessed 💝

life has brought me travel through labyrinth of life with traps and turns that cut and torture yet i am still a loved friend of many, a hated enemy of some — i am still so much blessed with cuts and bruises 💝 i’ve lost much but i find myself

no one shall erase this happy girl within — a blessed soul that travels through space and time 🙏🏼 thank you

Ramadhan Odd Night

Learning, Poetic, This Person, Those People
Sleeping under dome,
Reciting signs of wisdom,
Ramadhan odd night

—-

Some friends of mine and I stayed overnight in Istiqlal Mosque on Apr 15 (25th night of Ramadhan) to focus on “sleep less, pray more”. We did much earlier as high schooler when we stayed overnight at school in 2 Ramadhan nights to sleep less and pray more to gain lailatur qadar that my friends and I believe is special night to reveal truth within our own selves.

This very time in Istiqlal 3 things were emphasised by some teachers to all of us.

  1. Birr walidayn (doing good deed to our parents) including but not limited to making them feel in ease and peace, show respect and gratitude, talk softly, pay regular visit, cook their favourite food, buy good clothes, and other good deeds
  2. Knowing one’s self = knowing the God — interaction with one’s self is as important as interaction with other human beings as tools to clearly see the core self within
  3. Loving fellow creatures is paramount in life — no choice as human beings without discrimination!

Thousands of muslims stayed in the mosque and we didn’t know each other, we just followed the scheduled activities mostly in silence or very casual salaam except talking in low voice to few friends going together as groups.

Thanks for giving me one night to sleep less and pray more.

💝

with girl friends in senior high school class — me with 2 besties 💝💝💝 night for (crazy) youngsters

Ramadhan Odd Night in Istiqlal Mosque, me and 2 good friends slept under the 3rd pillar in the female chamber (left side of the hall), there is partition between male and female chambers — felt like staring hundreds of star clusters 💝

Busy

Learning, This Person, Those People
Busy explaining
Busy pretending
Busy threatening
Busy flexing
Busy building what’s hiding
Forgetting what’s to be true.

Ah!
That’s normal
As I’m a human being.

Time has come to being human
Maybe one more week
Or one twilight
Or months
Time can be so biased
For me who is
Busy being someone else.

—-

Rike, try this one! you’re too busy with the deep fried, this one is healthier and there’s egg your fave 🥢

Perfect Imperfection

Learning, Poetic, This Person
Is life abundant?
She asked.
They said,
When you have everything.
She walked away,
There was never everything
In imperfection.

She says.
Life is generous.
They say,
Because you have everything.
She walks away,
There is never perfection
In everything.

Life is abundant,
She agrees.
They ask,
Do you have everything? You are not perfect.
She walks away,
There is always perfection
In anything imperfect.

—-

anger has long gone but sadness is still lingering like a hungry fox hunting a chicken 🙃 yet life is so generous to me offering sweet imperfection and simplest perfection that might be just a dream for those perfect perfection — so thank you as always! 💝

giving myself time and space to live again 💝

Butterfly

Learning, Poetic, This Person
They’re flying
Around colours and shapes
In a garden
Where the gliding fragrance
And dripping nectars
Invite them
To celebrate
One phase
Before the next.

—

in Subak, Ubud wearing new clothes from Sukawati market (only for SGD30) and butterflies in my tummy 😁

Be Alive!

Learning, Poetic, This Person
There are two children
Living in one life, playing,
Generating joy.

—-

never want to lose the child within — they’re the source of joy! 💝

Climated

Learning, Poetic, This Person
Wind is welcomed
Some with jackets,
Some with shawls,
Some with sleeveless shirts,
Some naked like plants.
I am amazed by the fact
That they all survive.

Lend me socks and gloves,
I said to a snow bear.
It gave me thick fur
That was hung in a tree.
Wear my spare fur,
Just don’t be me,
It said. I nodded.

—

tulips among lucky bamboos, cordylines and bromeliad? — all are pretty!

Thank You for The Love and Loving

Learning, love, This Person, Those People

It is easy to say “that I should love all”; yet it is not that easy as to finally love easily in life as it takes a long process, including to understand what love is, how to express the love, to whom I should express it, how much love I should share, etc before it becomes my commitment to love.

To me everyday is love day, no matter how much love I can feel flowing in my veins. Today several love wishes came from some friends. Good to share with more people.

💕

—-

from me to myself
fellow biker
fellow biker
cat lover
art lover
art lover
i don’t know who sent it, maybe wrong number
travel lover
good friend
good friend
good friend
good friend

Love Day

Learning, love, Poetic, This Person
What is love day? 
A day when love is precious?
Only once a year?
How stingy human being is!
To express love only on that day—

Maybe they are afraid
Of saying love to
That they love dearly.

Maybe expression is
Embarrassing and too low
That they dump it cruelly.

Maybe love is considered a myth
Scientifically unproven
That it is skipped.

Maybe….
So much maybe.

I will still love
You
In silence
As
Love has made my heart pretty
Although rejection and ignorance
Once made it ugly.

All days are my love days.

To my
Beloved—

—

learned love from texts
looked for it everywhere
found it in beauty
the love keeps evaporating to the air that is breathed
melting to the water that is sipped
repeatedly exploding to illuminate the journey
let me sing love songs in silence to and for you
and sweetly silently celebrate it when i’m wishing to be

Floating So High

Learning, life, love, Poetic, This Person

Keeping afloat, buoyant freely swaying playing the waves in the sky—

—

Coldplay never fails me

A Loving Visit

Learning, life, love, Map It!, Poetic, This Person, Those People
A loving visit beyond time and space. Salaam. Universe answers.

—

about the museum
beloved
beloved
beloved
when you’re loved, people still visit you even when you’re nowhere 💝
when you’re loved, you’re taken care of even when you’re nowhere
beloved – visiting him with love, see you again
beloved – visiting him with love, see you again