Prices have been going up everywhere. The cost of raw food in the wet market has gone up. Groceries are more expensive and of course, petrol too. Like everyone else, I feel it every week when I realize

I came across The Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows several years ago. I found the Youtube channel first. I remember watching one video late at night. It was called Sonder: The Realization That Everyone Has

Most people don’t understand what it feels like to live between places. It is not exactly sadness. That is what I would want people to understand first. When they hear “between places,” they think of a

I woke up before sunrise that morning in Kyoto and left the hotel while the streets were still relatively empty and quiet. I wanted to reach the Arashiyama bamboo grove before the crowds came in. The air

According to Oliver Burkeman, the average human lifespan is about 4,000 weeks. It sounds like a large number at first glance, but as I reflect, it starts to feel limited. I will not have time to do everything

I am on a morning train in Japan, traveling from Tokyo to Kyoto without any hurry to get there. The shinkansen is quiet. There are empty seats on both sides of the aisle. I am seated by the window on the

I’m not very good at cooking. I usually keep my meals simple. I prepare food that is easy and does not need a lot of time or attention. Cooking has never been something I enjoy. I find the act tiresome.

(A photo taken earlier today during my morning walk at Putrajaya Botanical Park) I feel like the question “What have you learned recently?” is simple, but when I try to answer it, I hesitate. I don’t notice

In a previous post called The Essence of a Smaller Life, I wrote about reading Andy Couturier’s The Abundance of Less and how I became interested in the quiet lives of the people he profiles. The book

What is one word that describes you? Just one word? If it’s only a word, then I feel it seems too narrow for something that changes as much as a person. One word makes it sound like something is set in

I have been reading The Abundance of Less by Andy Couturier. I’m only on the first few chapters, but the people he writes about stay with me long after I’ve put the book down. They live in the countryside

Today’s writing prompt asks, “Who is the most confident person you know?” I paused reading it for a moment. The question assumes the existence of absolute confidence, as though an individual could navigate

Negative feelings often come and go, but some stay longer than we expect. I recently went through one of those stretches. It wasn’t just one feeling; it was a mix of many, including grief, boredom, loneliness,

I’ve been spending a lot of time working with paper lately. It starts off quietly. I look through my folders to find a drawing that fits. After that, I edit the poem that goes with it. Then comes the layout

Embuas (banded kingfisher), one of the Iban’s omen bird. Photo taken at the Borneo Cultures Museum. People sometimes ask whether I am superstitious. I never know how to answer that question. I grew up

If I could get rid of one word, what would it be? It would be the word "should". Why? That word is not rude or offensive. When someone uses it in a sentence, it doesn’t hurt or shock on impact.

As I write this, the world feels tense and unstable. The escalating conflict involving the United States, Israel, and Iran weighs heavily on many of us watching

The hardest DIY project I’ve ever done was teaching myself how to be an artist. I did not attend art school or take any formal art classes or workshops. I learned by watching YouTube videos, reading books,

There are times I read voraciously. Other times, a book sits unopened for weeks, waiting for me to catch up to whatever it’s trying to say. I used to feel guilty about it, for not finishing or for moving

A woman from the 14th floor of my apartment block took her own life a few weeks ago by jumping from her balcony early on a Saturday morning. I didn't know her. She was just another person who lived at