Ceiba pentandra - Kapok Tree

The king of the Kapok trees in Singapore must be this one in the Singapore Botanic Gardens. Actually, having said that, I think this tree is still not the most majestic. Another one near the bandstand in the gardens has an even more impressive set of buttress roots. Anyway, this particular tree attracted a lot of attention because its seed pods are bursting with cottony fluff (kapok) and much of it has already been released and are lying around the roots of the tree. In the old days, our pillows and bolsters were stuffed with kapok - childhood memories.

Sterculia parviflora

For the first time I encountered someone who pointed out to his lady companion something that he had found fascinating in a park. I was glad he did because I would have otherwise missed seeing these unique fruits high above me as I was as usual mesmerised by the ever flowering Torch Ginger plants beneath them.

I saw three or four such trees bearing these fruits around the Visitor Centre. Only one of the trees had a description and that is the one I am using for this post.

Singapore Botanic Gardens

Passing through the Visitor Centre of the Botanic Gardens in the evening, I just had to stop to register my time enjoying the evening light and shadows.

Reflections

I am experiencing difficulty in uploading my photos for today. Meanwhile I am looking at a poster on the wall that spells out "The Essence of Success" and I thought I would post the photos later and respond to what has been written about success.

Successful is the person:

1. who has lived well. (What is living well? Material comforts or being happy despite the lack of the means to buy things to live a comfortable existence? Or does it refer to how happy people are feeling about their lives? My answer varies according to the questions I ask).


2. laughed often (I don't laugh enough) and loved much (for every one who loves me I am sure there are a few who are not very fond of me, heheh)


3. who has gained the respect of children. (Those I give my time to, yes!)


4. who leaves the world better than they found it. (Er, now is not the time to judge.)


5. who never fails to look for the best in others (Most times, yes) and give the best of themselves (depends)


6. who has never lacked appreciation for the Earth's Beauty...(I ace this one!)

Plumeria, Frangipani

Raindrops on petals turn flowers into interesting subjects. These are no exceptions. Sembawang Park after a shower.

Thunbergia grandiflora - Clock Vine

These flowers can be spotted in the Singapore Botanic Gardens and West Coast Park. The plants are climbers and the flowers hang down the trellis in clusters often attracting huge, black bees. It must be a lot of work to maintain these plants that I am sure require constant trimming. I am just happy to see them in public parks because I do not have the energy to take care of plants such as these though it would be nice to be seeing flowers all the time in your own garden.

大花山牵牛
大花老鸦嘴

大花老鸦嘴

桂叶老鸦嘴

Thunbergia grandiflora 'Alba'

Etlingera elatoir - Torch Ginger

这朵鲜红花的吸引力其实是太强了. 我无发去抵抗.结果站在非常热的环境把花当者一位 漂亮的
模特儿. 通常别人会拍一张或两张照片.但是我和花的关系就比较特别.我也很难解释为什么我不能就拍一两张照片就觉得满足了.也许这是我的性格.想到要做就做到地.没兴趣就别开工.那天很幸运遇到那么迷人的花.可以说是迷我的花. 对我来说时间是很宝贵.但是假如我们闭者眼睛过日子我们可能会失去好多宝贵的体验和深沉的经验.

This huge torch ginger flower is far too attractive for me to resist. Usually people would stop by and take one or two photos and move on. Not me because I would stay to take numerous pictures before I am satisfied. I do not know why this is so, perhaps it is just my character to lose myself completely in whatever I do once I get started and time is forgotten for a while. I was very fortunate to have seen this beautiful flower on that extremely hot day. Time to me is precious but I feel that if we do not spend time to appreciate things around us, then we might just lose what is truly precious because of what we might have missed if we went around with our eyes closed half the time.

My writing in Chinese is sheer labour fueled by the motivation to learn in a meaningful way. Even though I make many grammatical errors, I do benefit from the exercise of finding the right words using my electronic dictionary.It is a pity I do not have a tutor anymore for she would have helped me to construct sentences that are correct in structure before I post them. My apologies for the flaws in the way I write in Chinese.

Tembusu tree flowers

我一踏进公元里就察觉到空气有一种芳香的气味。开始的时候没那么注意这事情。然后香味加强好几倍我才感到奇怪。香味到底从那里来呢？过一会儿我发觉树上铺满了好多好多的小花。地上也有。阿，知道了。了解了。这公园的好几多棵Tembusu 树在庆祝它们的生存。真的很妙！

When I stepped into the park, I could smell a fragrance in the air. At first, I did not pay much attention to it. As the fragrance got stronger and stronger, I became curious and wondered about where the fragrance came from. Then I realised that the foliage of the trees around me were covered with many small flowers. Some were on the ground too. Yes, I understood at last. The tembusu trees in the park were having a celebration of life. Wonderful!