Posted in Poems

The kampung house

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The house is still.
Holding its breath.
Nothing moves.
Waiting for death.

When will death come?
No one answers.
Silence in the house.
The air doesn’t stir.

It is stiffling.
A need to leave.
Is there a heart beat?
There is. There is.

The tap drips. A leak.
The house not so quiet.
The flicker of the light bulb.
Night descents on the house.

If you listen quietly.
You’ll hear the creaks.
Yet, the house is still.
Did you hear the heart beat?

Yet, the house waits.
The tractors will come.
And the bulldozers.
Not today. But soon.

Note: There are only a few kampungs (villages) left in Kuala Lumpur. One of them is Kampung Segambut Dalam. Highrise condominiums are sprouting up in this village and soon it will fade into history.

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By C.E. Pereira
(5-8-2019)

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