Second letter to Mama (Voice and Violin) by Cheng Jin Koh

Composed for the Loke Cheng Kim Foundation Dinner

Second letter to Mama by Judith Huang

Dear Mama, you are standing by the stove
and I am standing on the chair by the stove
as the rice rises warmly in the clay pot
the soy sauce stains it a chestnut brown
shiny as enamel with oil.

And the rain outside and the trees outside
are papaya trees, (and) their tiny flowers,
male, female, let out a scent
honey in water, with the swift
hard breaths of rainwater darts.

The puddles on the ground are Earl Grey tea,
Mama’s tea, taken with condensed milk
(in a pot) in the fridge, unstuck with the
pluck of the magnet. My hair is short,
glossy like the rice and the rain.

P.S Bracketed words are omitted words for the purpose of musical setting

Performed by Judith, Voice and Shuxiang, Violin