Latex of a Jackfruit

It was still mid morning but the sun has already begun to shine its best . I was making my way out of the area and about to negotiate a sharp bend when my eyes caught the white metallic surface moving slowly up the hill. The curvature of the surface had no visible markings and with the lower parts hidden by tall grass and small rises, my mind wandered to a land I have never been to. Although I knew by then what it was, the mind still insisted in projecting the image of a dhow sailing upstream of the Nile river.

Moments later, the image of the dhow was rudely shattered by one of a monstrous steel contrivance on wheels, one that is known as a concrete mixer. Sent to assist in the construction of a building, it in turn became an accomplice to the destruction of bushes that had sunk their roots deeper into the grounds of an area that had become barren where once, wildlife and a forest had been.

"El Nino, my foot!" the voice of a friend resounded, and a Malay proverb came to mind - Orang lain makan nangka, orang lain kena getahnya".