The 2 sisters and The Magic Faraway Tree

Few years back, I had a thought to publish a small book to pen down my experience with cake and its story through poetry. Well, I wrote the poems, but then, I left the thought dangling at the dusty corner of my brain. Amongst all the experiences, the story of the two sisters always leave a mark, and I've only came to know that the storybook titled "The Magic Faraway Tree" by Enid Blyton is very significant to not just one but both of them. This year we did another cake of the same storybook theme for one of the sister's birthday and it had got me reminiscing back about how our relationship had started with them. I managed to dig out the poem written back in 2018. There is much to wonder about how stories can travel through time, rekindles relationships,  spark imagination from one to another and even reliving memories. The influence we can have with characters in storybooks encourages play to take place and welcomes mischief, laughter and creativity. So here I present my story through a poem as how theirs had passed down to me.  

 

Relationships

Someone asked us

If this was all worth it

I thought now I'll tell them

This one story

We’ve known Sam 

Somewhere in February

She emailed us to ask 

If we could make a cake like this

To tell a tale of Enid Blyton’s

The Magical Faraway Tree

We thought through

And ponder if this can be

We planned and stamped

To our to-do-list

November came

Here comes her sister, Valerie

She asked if 21st December

We will be free

We are all booked

I am so sorry

No no no

This can’t be

Please make yourself available

Or else my sister will sure to kill me

What is her name, we asked

We’ll check and see

Her name is Sam

Please be free

Oh that Sam

She has spoken to me

Her date is booked

So don’t worry

That day came

We were all in glee

And shit happened

We hit a lorry

And there comes the rain 

Its pouring like free

A dangled bumper 

And a cake one piece

All we care

It’s to be there punctually

We arrived at Chjmes

And displayed the cake for them to see

All the smiles, and all the laughter

makes it all worth it

But in our hearts

We cursed that damn lorry

Now we had a car to fix

Occasionally we still meet Valerie

With her hunk in crime

To grab their favourite brownies

months, to years, its two-thousand eighteen

It’s her turn, to get married

To Mark, the dinosaur lover

And her one and only

We designed her a cake in emerald, blue

Blush,Peach & olive

29th April, the date it is

Where Val becomes Shan-to-be

A week later, 

She emailed and send us this

Where she and Mark

stared at the cake gleefully

Oh my god

We so love it

So what is the next occasion

For another cake to eat

In all excitement, 

we cheer merrily

Sam is expecting

Her first baby

We will be organising

A yellow gender party

Filled with nothing

But bumble bees

Could you make a cake that fits

To the theme “What will baby bee?”

We will be happy to

To be apart of this

The day came

And the cake is ready

We bribe Mark and Val

With some of our best cookies

She saw the cake

And told me this

I think I will take this cake home

And not appear for the party

We joked and chatted

Like old friends meet

Its 8 at night

And Sam send us this

I am prebooking you

For all his parties

Ah, now we know

A boy it is

So you tell me 

If this is all worth it

For money can’t buy

These relationships

 Samantha Quek