#2: Minding the Little Things
Project Mang-Ka-Ka is born!
Project Mang-Ka-Ka is born!
If the everyday could have a shape, colour and tone, what would they be? The thought of having to qualify dailyness brings to mind a local expression — like that lor — a phrase that depending on context, connotes varying nuances of as-is, obviousness, acceptance, incredulousness and ‘I dunno’. We are taught (and I think intuitively we also know) that it is through broadening our headspace to rise above the everyday that we are then able to sculpt freer and more meaningful paths. However, beginning to embody two selves — one that is chugging along the everyday, and the other an observer of that self — is a potentially daunting task that will take considerable effort before these selves can converge and one can start to piece together a new-found clarity.
In our round-table sharing, the participants voice out that the ‘small’ and ‘little’ everyday things are never interpreted in isolation, and are in fact defined first by larger ideas and systems. Unfortunately, these places, people, objects and habits are usually (re)discovered only after substantial time has passed; we begin to feel a hazy but unmistakable, nagging lack — a tiny cog has fallen out of place, or a pea has hidden itself amongst a stack of mattresses. The need for further examination on our lives then strikes, and we begin to (re)learn the ropes of balancing the 'near' and 'far-sightedness' of matters close to, within and beyond us.
In our round-table sharing, the participants voice out that the ‘small’ and ‘little’ everyday things are never interpreted in isolation, and are in fact defined first by larger ideas and systems. Unfortunately, these places, people, objects and habits are usually (re)discovered only after substantial time has passed; we begin to feel a hazy but unmistakable, nagging lack — a tiny cog has fallen out of place, or a pea has hidden itself amongst a stack of mattresses. The need for further examination on our lives then strikes, and we begin to (re)learn the ropes of balancing the 'near' and 'far-sightedness' of matters close to, within and beyond us.
When asked to raise examples of the everyday, Romin, a business adviser by profession, does not hesitate to articulate the interconnectedness of events and information that he has learnt from his job. “One thing can be applied to other models,” he emphasises, and it is through recognising the patterns of the things you do that helps you navigate and control them with ease. Zihuan relates the everyday to objects that we seemingly cannot do without such as keys, shoes and mobile devices. While our feet definitely could use protection (to suit occasion as well), keys and mobile devices feel like things that we have been made to rely on because of the supposed comfort and security they provide. He is not convinced that they are necessary for everyday life, and instead sees them as quotidian inconveniences; do they bind themselves to our daily rhythms or do we bind them to us? Hui Ying’s sharing invokes two extremely powerful symbols of origin — the sun and the family. Reflecting on the importance of resisting personal drives and ambitions, she strives to savour homeliness when she can, reminding herself to reach home in time to catch the sun set and be present for dinners with family. After all, no two sun sets (or home-cooked meals) are ever the same.
The line between work and home, however, is not so clear for Tom, our most well-known participant. As the chairman of Kallang CC's CCMC (Community Club Management Committee), Tom has been involved with its development since its earliest days, and defines his everyday as a never-ending process of finding solutions for the community. Even his quiet moments in the CC courtyard are spent focusing on decisions and events surrounding the CC, often drawing inspiration by looking at the sky and absorbing the vibrations of people passing through the vicinity. Despite his work being incredibly taxing, Tom persists in order to perfect a vision of building link ways and architectural extensions that will harmonize the entire CC, his final duty before stepping down as chairman.
Unsurprisingly, it is also through Tom that all of us get acquainted with the history of Boon Keng and its greater parameters. A book of the CC's history, of which there are only 3 precious copies left, is passed around for the group to browse. Romin even points out a young Tom in a black-and-white photograph! Everyone is also moved by Tom's story of the jackfruit tree that he planted for the CC in 1984. The tree has since grown into a three-storey-tall bearer of fruits, and we are treated to a sight of the plant just outside the conference room window. Inspired by Tom's account, everyone unanimously settles on the name "Project Mang-Ka-Ka". The foreign-sounding term is actually the colloquial hokkien name for the jackfruit, first used to refer to the jackfruit trees at Kempas Road. What better way to get to know Boon Keng than by reviving one of its dying names?
Copyright 2015 Ng Xi Jie, Geraldine Kang