Upon losing my voice, writing became important, and the only way of expressing emotion, as a Laryngectomee cannot laugh out loud like others, and a broad grin is the only facial sign of happiness. Tears in the eyes denote unhappiness, but sobbing or crying noises are not possible. So writing, in the form of poetry became my freedom of expression. In studying this vast subject, I realised that from ancient Greeks and Romans to present day Malay, every race in the world have several different ways of expressing themselves.

I rather like the Japanese Haiku’s, which are three line poems containing seventeen syllables, respectively five, seven and five, and they rarely rhyme. Some of my early Haikus.....

Fujiyama’s peak,
Snow through pink cherry blossom.
It points to heaven.

A painted lady,
Kimono clad, such beauty.
Smiling, pouring tea.

Honor bound in life,
and death, to our Emperor.
We live by the sword.