In mourning: my beloved park

Nowadays, i'm always pulled awake from my deep slumber on early weekend mornings, which are noise-filled with all the industrialization going on around my neighbourhood. First with the condo they've decided to build on a nice lush piece of green field two blocks from my house, and now with the revamping of Bishan park the govt announced a few months ago.

This morning, i was again woken up from loud noises.. the noises are right outside my window as the park is just below my house. I'd gotten rather used to such noises and didn't think much of it until I walked into the living room, and was greeted by the shock of my life.

The park as I've known it for 20 years, is literally gone overnight. The long line of tall, shady trees which I've known and loved my whole life is being chopped and killed at an alarming rate, and their carcasses now lay on the ground lifelessly as i type now:

I've always appreciated the beauty of these trees and over the years, i've watched them grow to become towering, strong trees which shelter my house and give it shade. They are at least 6 storeys high and look really mighty.

This photo illustrates how one side is completely dead now and the other side is how it used to be...:

And you won't believe this. As I was taking the photo, i heard a loud creaking sound and saw the next tree slowly, slowly tilting to the right and i stood there witnessing it fall from its grand height to the ground with a thundering crash within a few seconds. A man stood at the bottom of the tree, with a saw in his hand.

This photo is of the falling tree which just appeared in the previous photo, and is now a split second away from the ground when i managed to capture the photo just before it landed. My heart ached so much when i witnessed this that tears came to my eyes.

To the right.. already damage done. The bridge is my favourite bridge. How many evenings I've spent there throughout this whole life, standing on that bridge looking at the neighbourhood and admiring sunsets, thinking about stuff or cooling off from a run on my way home. The path i used to walk down from that bridge with my parents, to go through the park to have dinner at the porridge stall just across the park. I'd look up at the starry skies and loved the feeling of my parents' company when they're talking. For so many years i've been doing so since i was a little girl of 6.

I'm quite sure the bridge will be torn down and replaced with a new one. Even if it's not, i know the view and perspectives i get on that bridge would be different from then on.

To the left, relatively still untouched yet and is the park as i've known it (just ignore the industrialization taking place behind the park). But I'm very sure it would be gone too by the end of today or tomorrow. This canal used to be filled with sparkling clear water when i was young. There used to be big turtles swimming around the big square in the centre and they would come up to suntan! Super cute. But after the stream of water is polluted, there are no longer turtles and i think they've all died or something.

When i was looking out at this scene from the window, mummy was in the kitchen preparing lunch and telling me how sad she is. She says her heart really broke when she saw this and we complained about the govt initiative. Why must everything be industrialized, new, and commercialized? If i'm not wrong, they are gonna build some cafes and shops like right below my house. Why are we always making way for new buildings and structures so that there can be money-making opportunities? Does it mean that old places can't serve us well? I beg to differ because i feel that old places bring us a different realm of comfort and peace, and is a haven away from the industrial and globalized world we already live in and can see everywhere when we go out to work etc. We don't need to bring industrialization back to our neighbourhoods. No matter how much they try to convince us that the new park will look nicer, i won't be swayed.

All i want is for my park to remain how its like all these years. The very cosy and charming little park with old antique bridges, pebbled pavements and little brick shops. I even miss the old playground at the end of the park (the super old school type, with sand and cement, not the new generation type) where i used to play with my brother and cousin back in what must be 20 years ago. I miss the little red shop which rents out rollerblades and bikes and i used to go there w my family when i was a little girl, and after that w esther when i was in sec school to rent blades. i'm not sure whether this would be gone too.

Sigh. Really emo post for me. I don't think anyone would understand my feelings for this park unless they've lived here all their life too and looked at the park day and night from their home. As I'm typing this i can hear all the chopping going on and tractors moving around and i just heard another tree crash to the ground. Now i know the sound of trees dying and its imprinted in my mind forever. I hate it so much.