we are mere actors.

William Shakespeare - All the world's a stage (from As You Like It 2/7)

All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players:
They have their exits and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages. At first the infant,
Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms.
And then the whining school-boy, with his satchel
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school. And then the lover,
Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad
Made to his mistress' eyebrow. Then a soldier,
Full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard,
Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel,
Seeking the bubble reputation
Even in the cannon's mouth. And then the justice,
In fair round belly with good capon lined,
With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,
Full of wise saws and modern instances;
And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts
Into the lean and slipper'd pantaloon,
With spectacles on nose and pouch on side,
His youthful hose, well saved, a world too wide
For his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice,
Turning again toward childish treble, pipes
And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness and mere oblivion,
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.

This is one of my favourite saying of Shakespeare. It reflects very well on our well being in this world. And to micro this, we are all players, all actors, and in the concept of our being in this world and to being members of this apartment, we are all actors. We are here today and gone tomorrow. And so for now we are to play our part in the show. Each one of us has to contribute to make the show a success. We are to contribute to the well being of this community, we cannot just stand alone, and say “Let it be, our neighbours can take care of themselves, and I don’t depend on my neighbours”. In a way I agree, you are here today, and gone tomorrow, shift out, sell the apartment, or even die. But while you are here, you are to play your part.

I bet, many of us here are experienced or may have contacts outside the community or even a member of that ‘power’ community, Why don’t we use that experience of that ‘power’ to better this small community? If one cannot better this small community, how can one expect to better a bigger community, or even the Municipality, or the District, or the State, or the country or even the world. Of course one can just keep quiet and play safe in the status quo, as the Malay says “Macam anau dalam belukar”, you is you and I is I, we just fight for the sunlight.

Do we want our small community to have members like that?


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