Where Have All The Flowers Gone?

Bob Dylan's song 'Where Have All the Flowers Gone' aptly described the precarious situation we have put our only home Earth and our very being in. We have passed the warning stage and must prepare to move into a stage of adaption if we are to survive the impending catastrophies brought about by rapid climate changes.

So called computer generated weather pattern models can only second guess the effects of global warming with some experts expressing surprise at the sooner that expected rate of climate change. There are also those who state that we are in or just past the tipping point with regard to global scale climate changes withing the next few decades.

See - http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080827/ap_on_sc/sci_arctic_ice


And that brings me to my other encounter with 'flowers' on a hill. Decided to take a short hike Bukit Cina this afternoon at about 1pm. The hill was recently added as part of the World Heritage Site buffer zone owing to its significance to the historical landscape of the ancient city. It is perhaps the largest Chinese cemetery outside mainland China with graves dating back to the Ming era. There are also several anceint Muslim graves at the foothills including the ruins 16th Century Portuguese monestary that was destroyed in an Achinese attack.

The brilliant Sun was out amidst patches of clouds against the backdrop of a rich blue sky. Didn't think much of the impending climb as was armed with my G9 and eager to take a couple of snaps. Quarter way up was when I realised that I was the only living person literally walking amongst thousands of dead. And it was erriely quiet except for the sound of rustling leaves that accompanied the occasional breeze.


It got much creepier when it dawned on me that I was hiking up the hill in August, a month considered by the Chinese in their Lunar calender as the seventh month, the 'Month of the Hungry Ghosts'. It is a Chinese belief that the spirits of the dead are allowed to roam free to feast their hunger. The month is considered a bad month and this is even reflected in the drop in business dealings, transactions including marriages amongst those from the local Chinese community.

Adding to the already rising fear factor was the unfortunate luck of stumbling accross a Chinese movie on TV3 while waiting for the late news several days earlier. I caught a couple on minutes of the show which concerned a woman and child seeminly lost on a hill surrounded by hundreds of Chinese graves. Each grave had an undead sitting pensively and was said to be spirits who had been neglected by the living members of their families.

It didn't take me long to question the wisdom of my proposed hike up the hill. Darn, some graves were pretty worn and weathered with age. If it was anything to go by the show I had seen several days earlier, there must have been hundreds of undead sitting next to their graves as I was strolling pass them on my way up the peak. From the conditions of the graves, it was clear that 'they' had been neglected for quite sometime.

If not for faith, my over active imagination coupled with images of the undead next to their graves would have surely gotten the better of me resulting in me wetting my pants. As the adage goes, '...we have nothing to fear but fear itself'. Pushing aside fear, I focused on the task at hand and continued my walk.

There was a sense of relief when I reached the top. (About 380 feet above sea level based on GPS station set by the Survey and Mapping Department). It ws worth the while and I enjoyed the view and scenery. Would have stayed longer to explore but then again, didn't want to wander to far off the platue at the peak.

It was oddly pleasant as I looked around and saw more than just graves. There was life and beauty in the hill which was surrounded with nature. The photo of some common wild flowers sums up my trip up Bukit Cina.


...Quaere Verum...

To None I I Wish Ill But To All I Wish Peace and Love.