Trust the process of change
Dear Reader,
I learnt a huge lesson in the process of writing Ayam Buah Keluak and the Art of Writing (to be launched at the Singapore Writers Festival on 17 Nov 2024).
When the Universe suggests a change in direction, trust it!
I had finished the whole book and submitted it to Ethos. The theme of the book is on creativity and how to access it through writing, cooking and other pursuits. It was an entirely how-to book without personal mentions.
Both my publisher Kah Gay and my editor Cassandra, saw that the book needed to morph into a more personal memoir to illustrate the philosophy behind the points I made. I resisted this idea as I felt that I had written enough about my personal life in my other books. But after much persuasion by them, and intense meditation on my part, I felt they were right.
It was serendipitous that I lunched with a friend subsequently. For some reason, she chose that day to divulge the fact that she had to divorce her husband because of his verbal and physical abuse due to his alcoholism. Instinctively, I knew that the Universe was guiding me to disclose my own story. When I told my friend about what I had suffered, she was vehement about me sharing it, so that others could learn from it, take action or escape from such a toxic relationship.
Thus, the personal memoir was born.
The horror of my past poured onto the pages. Even after twenty years, the pain was still lodged inside me. To take a line from Lady Gaga’s song, “it’s buried in my soul/ like California gold.” Though buried deep, it was not gold but wounds that needed to be healed.
I thought I had chosen the Ayam Buah Keluak dish because it’s the quintessential Peranakan dish. The buah keluak fruit has cyanide poison within its grooves. It turns out that this was the metaphor for life! Our lives are not entirely free from hurt or poison, but we can transmute it! If we have the correct knowledge or tools, we can turn something poisonous into a delicious dish. It means we don’t have to die from the poison.
This means we can change our circumstances, no matter how toxic they are!
Josephine
When the Universe suggests a change in direction, trust it!
I had finished the whole book and submitted it to Ethos. The theme of the book is on creativity and how to access it through writing, cooking and other pursuits. It was an entirely how-to book without personal mentions.
Both my publisher Kah Gay and my editor Cassandra, saw that the book needed to morph into a more personal memoir to illustrate the philosophy behind the points I made. I resisted this idea as I felt that I had written enough about my personal life in my other books. But after much persuasion by them, and intense meditation on my part, I felt they were right.
It was serendipitous that I lunched with a friend subsequently. For some reason, she chose that day to divulge the fact that she had to divorce her husband because of his verbal and physical abuse due to his alcoholism. Instinctively, I knew that the Universe was guiding me to disclose my own story. When I told my friend about what I had suffered, she was vehement about me sharing it, so that others could learn from it, take action or escape from such a toxic relationship.
Thus, the personal memoir was born.
The horror of my past poured onto the pages. Even after twenty years, the pain was still lodged inside me. To take a line from Lady Gaga’s song, “it’s buried in my soul/ like California gold.” Though buried deep, it was not gold but wounds that needed to be healed.
I thought I had chosen the Ayam Buah Keluak dish because it’s the quintessential Peranakan dish. The buah keluak fruit has cyanide poison within its grooves. It turns out that this was the metaphor for life! Our lives are not entirely free from hurt or poison, but we can transmute it! If we have the correct knowledge or tools, we can turn something poisonous into a delicious dish. It means we don’t have to die from the poison.
This means we can change our circumstances, no matter how toxic they are!
Josephine
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