Alor Star

                                                               Picture by Johnsonooijunsheng
Image: The Menara, the tower in Alor Star
Sourced through Wikimedia Commons (here)

It took a good part of six hours
then, by road to Alor Star. A journey
of love and hope. The first of many
through the years

It started way back forty-four years ago
That long and how time flies
I used to make it to Alor Star
for short visits. The courtship for
my beloved Shadah in fact started
a few years before that

It was Orientation Week on campus
I spied a shy lass with books and papers
in a sling bag looking with anticipation
A 'freshie' lost in the crowd
I was a 'senior' ready to pounce
on unsuspecting 'innocents' of
beautifully garbed young ladies
who had just arrived as new students

One thing led to the other
Many hours together,in the library
Visits to the Third Residential College
the residence where she put up at
Cheap meals at the nearby eateries
Or just walking hand in hand evenings
where there were open spaces within
Whispering sweet nothings just as other
couples bent on building a relationship
Those were the days of courtship
on a meager stipend of limited wants

We don't make visits to Alor Star anymore
My father-in-law had passed on, my mother-
in-law is now with us. Our house there is left
empty just so we still have a place to stay
should we make that rare visit again

How we miss the place. The food was
cheap with a variety of the local fare
The environment was healthy.  Many places
around were still undisturbed (perhaps there
were changes lately) The pace was slower
It was ideal for retirement.

Thanks for the memories, Alor Star!

Written for Stu hosting at d'Verse with Poetics: MISSING YOU