Teesta Review: A Journal of Poetry, Volume 1, Number 1. May 2018. ISSN: 2581-7094
My River with History
--- Sumadi Sakawi
My river
You flow slow like a slithering snake
The history written with your current
Reminiscence of natives smiles and tears
You are the sole spectator of development around you
With your calm water
You see history like an open book
yesteryears to new era
Deceive not the history…
You take it in your flow
Quietly witnessing them all.
My river
Sang Nila Utama landed at the
bank
Taking shelter from the storm
Away from calamity
With crown jewel thrown into the sea
Not mentioned in the history book
A history not written in letters
Are no history ..claimed the Imperialist
Just fairy tales
To bring a small child to wonderland
Disappeared during the day.
On your bank now, my river
Raffles stands arms folded
In white stands proud
Not the statue of the pioneer
Looking far into my river
Inhaling thousand of secrets into his stoic body
Tourists are plenty around
Sang Nila Utama was never
mentioned
But your bank is the dumb witness
Void of voice …void of truth
historians are at odds.
On the bank of my river
Plenty secrets are kept
Lots of secrets buried
Blanketed by thick mud
Natives do not dare to dig up
Should they feel shy to the world
When the ulcers are exposed
On the breast of development and efficiency
Lets buried the facts
Lets keeps in the history grave
Sang
Nila Utama :
The Indian Prince that opened Temasik (the original name for Singapore)
Raffles :
Founder of new Singapore