| In
Priscilla's Honour The Grain that made the Pearl |
Passed
away on 27 May 2004 |
| She
would have been 'ordinary' - as ordinary as a grain of sand. But in
Chek Jawa's perennial Oyster, she was destined to be that special
Grain that made the Pearl. She had endeared and the thousands who
came to know her, loved her. However, there was a side of her that many were not aware of. It was her loneliness. For come each dusk, she would cut a poignant silhouette in the failing light at Chek Jawa. A lonely Little Mermaid that she really was. |
 |
In truth, she was neither pet nor wild pig. Being hand-raised, she could never assimulate fully into the wild nor could she ours. She was caught between two worlds. Yet, in that 'loneliness', she epitomized prescisely the people struggling for the conservation of Nature all over the world. For they are also caught between 'two worlds' - struggling between vulnerable Nature and the destructive Man, and it could be very lonely indeed. Even the inspiring Lao Tsu was not spared from loneliness of purpose, as he once lamented, 'I am alone, without a place to go... I drift like the waves of the sea, without direction, like the restless wind. Everyone else is busy, but I alone am aimless and depressed. I am different. I am nourished by the great mother.' To these people, especially those who are still working heart and soul for Chek Jawa even now, I think Priscilla would say this if she could speak - 'You are special, and are destined to be the proverbial grain of sand that made the pearl. In Chek Jawa, you will never be alone. Do not give up. You belong here just as I... and nowhere esle. You are the true sons and daugthers of our soil. Take heart.' May she forever be remembered as the gentle First Lady of Chek Jawa, and may her spirit rings the vesper-bell of hope for Chek Jawa at every sunset. |
See oral history of Mr. Yeo - the kind person who adopted this once lost and hungry piglet years ago.