Malaysiana - The Maiden Of Malaya Poem by john tiong chunghoo

The maiden of Malaya
is full of romance
Her hair curls and flows
the way The Melaka Straits
meets the Andaman, stretches of love
that sweep onto The Golden Chersonese

Seeds from afar as the desert plain of Arabia,
the land of Taj Mahal, Asoka - you see them
dancing in her ebullient eyes, magical eyes
with lashes so long they flip into your heart
to remain in warm quarters you could
savour in the dead of nights

Her finely arched eyebrows sweep
you through the swathes and swathes of
Arab sand where you remember
the Prophet and all his sayings

Layer upon layer of her
passion is played out by
the sand that swirls with the wind
the moment it blows, turning the clear sky
into a miasma of desires and dreams

Her curvaceous physique
is made more desirous by
her lace embellished
gracious kebayas

Every inch inches into your fantasy,
tugs at your heartstrings, the way
the golden threads are woven
into the figure hugging costumes

Her soft tapering fingers
are coloured with henna
when she marries - two floral
patterned hands that promise
a wonderland of cuisine to spice up
your life in all spheres

The maiden of Malaya
is full of romance,
In her flows a potpourri of cultures
that would melt away a man's heart, cultures
that shine with the mesmerising mirage of Arabia,
sway to the riveting Indian drums and
twirl and swirl to the gracefulness of a ballet nubile

The Golden Chersonese, the golden land,
golden culture and the lady that is the essence of it all