delfland

a day spent on a bike. with a borrowed bicycle i came to the coast of a place called 'monster' in the netherlands. from there you could see the sea that separated me from england. it was a terribly windy and cloudy day. with musa and the other bikers from indonesia i left delft at ten and back here at five. i rest in musa's space box immediately as the room was cosy and my legs were exhausted.

hmm... there, and back again. this is my third episode of visiting delft, a dutch town known for its blue ceramics and delicious cheese. my third episode of connecting the dots. the lines on the map are getting thicker. each visit has its own purpose and results. not all of these are known to me, at least in the beginning.

oi oi oi...

antidote

he is just trying to remain intact these days. because it feels like standing in an open field and four strong winds try to drag this grip away. from all directions the questions come, freezing and hard, embracing the youth that resides within him with their arms of ice. asking him for his time and his name. he gave them both. they still want more. the rest. oh he guessed only the red twinkling lamp attached to the rear of his bike would really give him protection from behind.

if he squeezes an hour of his time, he will get five to ten minutes of it as the core of that hour, the essence of his concentrated work. the summary of the sixty minutes. because the rest are but a story upon which he dwells to get to his ultimate quality. a story he presents to the world, with his name on the top of it as its title. when the clock is ticking, the heart is beating too, and the evolution goes on. dark, bright, ever changing of seasons. the progress, or not really, simply the movement, continues to make sure that the ship reaches the land. now look at the waves, and be silent... ah, and he knows it's the time for the swan to float on the english river.

hilary

this coming week is the beginning of my hilary term. my second term here in oxford. another journey into eight weeks of courses, tutorials, essays, visiting lecturers and perhaps presentations. one third of the entire programme is done, and i feel quite okay with the journey i made so far.

i have a bike now. purple. not new, but i'm happy with it, and it's history. it's an inheritance from a friend. i dressed it with red and white lamps so that police will not catch me when i happen to roam around in the dark, which i often do. especially now in winter, when days are short and sky is often grey. the red lamps, oh you should see them when they're twinkling. attractive and lively. with this bike, i am hoping to be able to extend the limits of my exploration around these areas...

i notice too that lately the curls on my hair are more dominant. i will not cut them, not exactly now. because i still like the feel of them - a certain kind of freedom, like when i'm on the bike and the wind is heavy, tossing them. and my heart will sing... "bicycle, bicycle, bicycle... i want to ride my bicycle, i want to ride by bike...! i want to ride my bicycle, i want to ride it where i like..."