Time-- the greatest gift
We Asians are generally not as expressive as our western counterparts. “I love you”, a mere three words, is not something we hang by our mouths / say easily. Instead, we usually express our love and gratitude for others through our actions, through spending time, or through nagging, a trait especially unique to asian mothers. Although quality time may not be everyone’s primary love language, I believe it’s something everyone would nonetheless appreciate. In my short series of photographs, I hope to encapsulate the idea of love through the gifts, mostly the gift time, in subtly different ways. My photographs are kept simple, nothing extravagant, to convey the idea that gifts likewise, can be simple and it is the thought and sincerity behind that counts.

Lemon tea, badminton rackets, sandals. In my first photograph, the mother-son duo were sitting under the pavilion, quietly admiring the lush greenery they were surrounded by. What I found amazing was the fact that there were no technological devices in sight (which I felt was a rarity in this digital day and age where seeing parents resorting to iPads to keep their children quiet and entertained over meals is not an uncommon sight); just a mother and a son spending quality time together, presumably after a game of badminton. No words need to be exchanged, but I believe both mother and son could feel the joy, the comfort, the love from just spending time together.

“Eh! I tell you how many times already! Don’t put your fingers in your mouth!” Did the mother really say that? Nah it’s just a figment of my imagination seeing the mother’s slightly displeased expression. But I believe, such loving nagging is something most Asians would be able to resonate with and hold close to their hearts. Drawn by the vibrant reds and pinks adorning the trees, I chanced upon this mother-daughter duo in a charming, peaceful nook. Although not exactly captured in the photograph, the mother and her daughter were just spending time together, enjoying some snacks quietly. We often underestimate the value of enjoying food and meals together with our loved ones and friends, at least until the arrival of our dear friend, COVID-19 and her trusty sidekick, Circuit Breaker. There’s just something, a certain je ne sais quoi about food that brings people together.

In my third photograph, the couple was previously huddled close together reading the information plaques about the flora in the area, pointing and giggling as they did. They were in a world of their own; I didn’t want to interrupt that with my sudden appearance and ‘click’ sound from my camera when I take a picture, and so I waited till they were about to embark on another adventure. Miraculously, as they were leaving, everything fell into place and I managed to frame the couple such that they were the only subjects amidst nature, and were exiting a ‘tunnel’ in search of a new adventure, in a world of their own.

In my photographs, I captured people spending time together, after play, over food, I guess the silver lining of the pandemic is that we now better appreciate the little gifts of life– spending time together, enjoying a meal together, or perhaps even getting nagged at, for those who live away from their parents and were unable to visit them during the circuit breaker. It’s the little things that count.