Saturday, May 13, 2006

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY!!!

When is it? I know it is in the next few days if not tomorrow, anyways, where would we be without mothers! Oh some of us us hates her and some love her more than their own selves, I mean where would we be without mothers?? She is overweight and she nags too much, she serves our fathers like he is the Lord of the House and she lets her voice be heard for those who watches too much TV.. Crayon Shin Chan or Doraemon...but do we care? Nope she loves us that she worries sick when we are ill and she moeks sure we had our breakfast and lunch and she is will the wrath of our fathers to protect us when needs be.
HAPPY MOTHER"S DAY!!!
There was a time in my life when I thought my mother despised me for being born when I was not supposed to... I was the second child who even my Auntie the Midwife did not anticipate the coming of,I was an unwelcomed child for everything needed for a delivery was prepared only for one child and no one suspected that we were born twins, a half an hour between us and He came first. My parents could barely support five kids at the time and along I decided to join the clan. Bad timing and a price to pay in the later part of my life as I have learned. One consolation is that I was later adopted by my mother's younger brother who was then still single and had me take cre of by my mother's younger sister who was also then single. Alhamdullilllah for I was the blessed one for my life was alot more comfortable compared to my twin brother's. I lived apart from my immediate family till I was twelve years old...I was a bloody pain in the ass to everyone when I was growing up.
But I was writinbg about mothers not my self, and so I will continue on with my story about the one thime when I was really pissed at my Mom. It was when I was about sixteen or seventeen attending my Secondary school in Terengganu. It was late at night about two or three in the morning and I was sitting in the living room with my fingers all covered with glue and pieces of paper and coated with acrylic paint. I was working on my collage piece cutting away my eldest brother's collection of PlayBoy Magazine to make a picture. I was getting good at it and enjoyed the time especially when I sold one or two to my school teachers. Then my mother who was sleeping next room came out of her room turned off the light and went back to bed after slamming the door shut behind her. She shut the light out of my desire or passion to create, I did not have anything to do with Art for the next ten years of my life till I was in West Allis near Milwaukee, Wisconsin where iw as working as a Meat cutter at Peck Meat Packing Plant downtown Milwaukee on 17th.Avenue in 1974.
I told this story at the oppening of my HUMIND Solo Exhibition when invited to deliver a short speach. My point was to impress upon the mothers present and the fathers' too the importance of knowing their limits in punnishing their children and the wisdom in doing so. I was trying to share with all those who were present the importance or creativity and the lack of it among our children today was they are more and more getting sucked into the TV tube.
HAPPY MOTHER"S DAY!!!
It is almost two weeks now that my show has been on and so far I got many complements from all those I managed to persuade to visit it. I happeared in Three National Newspapers here and each wrote their own version of what or who I am and among them the STAR Newspaper did a good writeout which I am honored to be recognized so by their reporter and the fact that they alloted me almost one whole page except for a small advertizement column. It does feels good to be recognized by the Media no doubt and I feel great inside knowing that I have come thus far with my works. I am forever greatful to those who helped to make it such a dream comew true. The Director Muzium and Arts Gallery at the University Sains here in Penang who has been the prime mover of the success of the show, Encik Hasnul Jamal B.Saidon, a great artist and painter himself who wrote a elloquent piece for my show printed on the brochure.

THIS SHOW IS FOR ALL THE MOTHERS IN MY LIFE WHO AT ONE TIME OR ANOTHER WAS ONCE A MOTHER TO ME IN MY PAST LIVES!!!

Which past life are you talking about?? my niece Azwin asked as she read the last lines, she just walked in with a bunch of Groceries.
And now it is time to retreat as the room has become too noisy even fro me to concentrate...Thanks MOM!
To My Mother and to my wives Nancy and Faye Bahari (The later was my first marriage that took me on this journey by her grace).

No comments: