Filled with silence and grayness, the boy thought of his dream the previous night.

"What could be so beautiful that flows endlessly without sleep?"

His head was full of voices and song, but he could not utter a word.

This boy was born in a world without sound.

As he lies on the bed, his eye-lids grew heavier.

After all, what was the point of staring out if there's only nothingness to be found?

He slowly seeped into a world of his own - away from reality, away from us.

It was then, he heard a voice singing...

There, as the connection was made, a tear slid down his tiny face...

My concept of past, present and future has always been rather volatile for the longest time I could remember But lately, I find myself simplifying things, perhaps too much, and actually came up with straightforward definitions to describe the three time zones, fixated and spiritless.

Past - My years of education and school life prior to national service.

Present - National Service

Future - University life, work and financial independence.

While most people will agree that the above definitions could not have been more accurate and practical in relation to their own lives, I find myself saddled with a worry that I have missed out something really really important. Why was it that I was able to define these three time zones when I couldn't have come up with solid answer in the past? Do you call this maturing? So as we mature, do we start to glue ourselves with realistic situations and actually modify or abandon those dreams and plans we once had that we thought would construct our ideal lives?

Yes, maybe. That's probably why as we progress in education from kindergaten to primary school to secondary school, we learn vocabulary like daydreaming, fantasy and ideals. Eventually, all these plans and dreams we had becomes the innocent entertainment for the society. I started to think I was not missing something, but I was too caught up with the past. Perhaps I had something I had back then that I did not now.

As I carried on filling up my life with meaningful activities that I had always wanted to engage in for a long time, I continued wondering, for perhaps one day I might figure out what was missing this time, attribute or ingredient. But for now, I stand firm to my personal belief - nothing can transcend time.