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St Joseph’s Home
By peace | May 30, 2008
Name of Agency: St Joseph’s Home & Hospice
Address: 921 Jurong Road, Singapore 649694
Tel: 6268-0482
Human life is a gift and it remains precious even when marked by suffering and limitations. It is a gift to be accepted and to be loved at all times, received without pay and to be placed without pay at the services of others. ~ - Pope John Paul II, Lent 2002
Finally done this up last night. It was photographs of precious Boon Lay, the place I stayed during my childhood. The place I played and spent my precious childhood with my family.
My block had undergone a lot of facelift. It was a 3-room flat, and the whole block of flat was painted pink in my memory, the very first colour. Over there, there were my favourite playground, the area there where I used to hear frogs croaking, cats meowing and dogs barking and people shouting, screaming, quarreling.
Behind my house, at the playground, there were my favourite trees. I miss Mexican lilac, Gliricidia sepium. I thought I was able to see these trees when I went there on 17th May 2008, but I was disappointed not to see it at all. I had not seen this trees for years, ever since I left Boon Lay.
The familiar circle, the road which I used to cross and waited for school bus and cars, were no longer there. All the space were filled with flats now. What a pathetic scene, a piece of ‘cramp’ land with so many flats building on it. But I still walk further to the playground. Lots and lots of changes. Everything was gone. No more soccer field, no more ‘traditional’ playground — the slides and the swing, but only modern ’sporty’ playground, more for exercise.
My joy was brought back when I saw the drain remains. The big drain where children used to catch guppies and tubiflex worms. There was even one time where a pig was being ‘flushed’ down this drain. That was what I heard, because this drain connect the farm at 12th mile (Hong Kah area at that time).
I was so excited to explore the place. Walking along the road, I saw so many old Rain Trees, so huge and all so ‘fertile’ with bird nests and other ferns growing on it. Even the fig started to grow on the roots of the rain trees. All these scenes that I see has meaning and message to tell.
It was such a touching moment to see from afar the reddish bricks of St Joseph’s Home. It was ’seen’ in my dream, Saint Joseph, it was the carpenter, the builder and protector of the catholic church. The dream of the gate, golden brown = bronze colour = bronze colour of St Anthony Statue….
There is so much to be learned from nature. Yellow Flame, the fruit of this tree is brownish, like bronze with ripe. Around this time, all the Yellow Flame has turned into fruits now. At St Anthony Church of Padua, there were three Yellow Flame standing side by side. Two of them were so brown already and one more coming soon. That is the bronze spirit in the air….
God Alone Our Strength Joy And Hope
St. Joseph’s Home was set up by the Catholic Welfare Services in 1978 to provide shelter, care and love for the aged and destitute, regardless of race or religion. It was the late Dr. Ee Peng Liang’s vision and untiring efforts that made this possible.
Topics: All Posts, Home, Personal, Places, Song |
July 1st, 2008 at 12:00 am
[…] Primary School is just opposite St Joseph’s Home. It looked so new, so nice, at this new location, Jurong West St 24. On that day when I visited the […]
July 1st, 2008 at 3:13 pm
[…] Gregory Yong stayed at St Joseph’s Home for four years. I never know that. Otherwise, I would have gone in to visit him on that day when I passed by St Joseph’s Home. […]