The phrase "So near yet so far" springs to mind when I think of how, despite the very small size of our island, it is actually possible to seldom (or never) venture to places that lie beyond the sphere of our life, and lifestyle.
This is a pattern I hope to change.
This is a pattern I realize I have to change.
Because sometimes time doesn't wait for you.
An elderly man (of late) whom I know drove a taxi for many years, and even though he must have fetched many a passenger to the Singapore Zoo, never got to visit it himself except for this very one (and, unfortunately, last) time.
In the same way, I too, had, via the buses, gone past the outskirts of MacRitchie Reservoir for many years- the first time was almost two decades ago- and in the years past I have also been to countries across the Pacific - and yet, since childhood had never even gone inside.
So it was that a few months ago I decided to drop in.
Given that I hadn't been back to MacRitchie in what must be more than three decades (so far back that I don't even remember whether I'd been there in the first place) I decided that, instead of being adventurous and going on paths unknown, I would a) not go alone and b) stick to the easy path.
I think there're a couple of entrances to MacRitchie.
I chose the most popular one.
Entering the park from where Lornie Road meets Thomson Road (opposite Mt. Alvernia Hospital), we took a left, going on a little path lined with trees until we got to a slope that overlooked the landmark pavilion. Along the way there were a family of macaques, but heading the advice of the State Park Rangers, we left them well alone.
What name it was I don't know, which direction it was heading to I also don't know- we were literally playing by ear and going where our feet led- but there were others coming from the opposite direction, so I figured we'd be good.
I think the path went around one (small) part of the reservoir, in between which there was one path where you could head off through the trees towards Bukit Timah Nature Reserve (a good distance away) and another path which also through the trees led you to another part of the reservoir.
Along the way at an intersection there was the Ranger's Hut (or something like that) for water breaks and snack feeds.
This is no tourist-book description.
It is not intended to be.
I'm writing this just to remember that the weather was good, that the light was gorgeous, that there were hidden surprises here and there, and that the waters were as calm and still like the sheen of a mirror.
I'm also writing this to remember the Moments.
Moments that sprung themselves upon me which I would never have expected whilst being on a regular, easy hike in MacRitchie.
There were Moments where I felt like I were looking out of a cave.
And there were Moments where the Reservoir herself gave off so many different vibes.
Everything was magical.
At some places I felt like I were in a forest.
At some places I felt like I were elsewhere on this Earth.
And at some places I felt the water looked so clear I thought I could peer through the waters to the bed of the reservoir.
Was it just me, and my imagination?
I don't know.
Perhaps another day I shall make another trip there and see if I receive from Nature the same magical vibes.
But at least for this day- for just a few short hours- I really did forget that I was on a small island, I really did forget that a short distance away were the bustling heartlands of Thomson, Ang Mo Kio, Bishan and Toa Payoh, and I simply let myself dwell in a space where two worlds mirrored each other, locking me into their harmonious embrace.
