FOOTNOTES TO A MISSING CHAPTER

“Apa khabar”, (in Bahasa¹) or

      how are you?

“Boleh anda tulong saya”, or

     can you help me?

For how am I going

     to shake hands with you?

When you woke me up

     at early dawn in Laban Rata-

     Base Camp at 7.1 centigrade,

     freezing my bones, trying

     to break my will. 

 

Until when (“pukul berapa”)

     would you wait for me?

Your sentinel peaks

      are mocking my pace

Your towering slopes, slowing me down

Your granite walls

      just awesome to behold!

And your bottomless gully

     chasing my spirits away.

CAN YOU REALLY WAIT FOR ME?

“Terima kasih” or

      thank you, anyhow

For the mysteries engulfing you

      are only magnetizing me:

      step by step, breath by breath,

      to inch closer to you,

      to forget about crippling injuries

      but to immortalize LIFE and Courage

And then,

     you hugged me at 13,455 feet

     7 o’clock in your breezy morning

     and whispered, “Selamat detang”

       or “WELCOME”

How could I ever forget that moment

We were in a tight embrace

You, the monumental figure

     of Mother Time

And juvenile me, searching since,

     for you in the vast expanse

You humming lullaby’s,

     cuddling my innocence

When I return

     to bring my friends

     to also shake hands with you

I can only say,

     now that I am home

“Jumpa lagi” or

     See you soon.

           By: Abe S. Manlawe, M.D.-Psychiatry

           July 16, 2006

 Dr. Abe Manlawe & Manwel Roble

1 Bahasa is the national language of Malaysia