When i was a child, going to Geylang Bazaar during the fasting month was such an exciting adventure and it often made me giddy with fascination. The nostalgic place would be flooded with lights, colour and thronged with the malay-muslim community, going about in the midst of their Hari Raya preparations. I had loved the sights, the sounds and the smell of dendengs wafting about. I loved the thrill of seeing the twinkling lampu kelap kelip, the cacophony of shoppers haggling, the cry of sales calls from shopowners and the colourful displays of traditional costumes hanging attractively above my head. Oh, and not forgetting the tunes of Hari Raya melodies resonating above the din in Geylang Serai.

In recent years, i realized that i could not really feel the true essence of Ramadhan anymore, when i stroll down the lanes in Geylang. Somehow, i feel something has discreetly changed. Something, has stirred in the air and i could not put a finger to it. And this year, at this time of the year, i inexplicably feel it again. Somehow, the lights, sounds and sights of Geylang Serai during the fasting month have lost its charms. And, to me, the true meaning and spirit of Hari Raya has, in some ways, been tainted.

For the past few years, my eyes have seen far too much contamination of the entire vicinity. Maybe, to my old eyes, nothing seems nice and dandy anymore. For now, I am seeing it no longer through the eyes of an impressionable young child, but through the eyes of an adult. My interpretation of what i see now differs more than slightly of what i saw when i was a child.

For one, i noticed that the place now is littered with mats and minahs and other perpetrators of the muslim world.

The other afternoon, while i was breezing through Joo Chiat Complex, i couldnt help noticing this true blue mat and minah couple. Decked in their ever famous black shirt and pants for the mat, and black blouse with a sickeningly short black skirt for the minah, they sat by the roadside, smoking and drinking a can of soft drink. I cringed and looked away, not before i saw the look in the minah's eyes: she was smirking, whilst throwing me a challenged look. As if I am the greatest perpetrator of the holy month, not her. I saw some pakciks, late in the last few years of their God-forsaken lives, dawdling, smoking and wasting their time at coffee shops, with bottles of Carlsberg and Tiger Beer scattered on their tables.

All these, in broad daylight during a day in Ramadhan.

While i was doing the groceries shopping at one of the mini marts, the chinese grocer asked me, "Lu ada puasa ini hari?". After i answered a 'yes', he continued, "Saya nampak manyak itu budak muda-muda takda puasa. Dia olang muka takda malu, makan depan olang ramai". If i had a barf bag with me then, i'd hide my head in it. Hey, I was fasting and of course I felt ashamed, having taken the full brunt of that remark.

Where has all the respect gone to? I truly wonder the true essence of this holy month. I would not say that I am a pious, truly religion-abiding person but I do know the meaning of respect. I'm very sure that there are a huge lot of us who stringently & religiously carry out their duties as a muslim. And im proud of that.

But there is a fraction of the society that taints and discolour the community. All you need to do is make your way down to Geylang during it's busiest and cringe with mortification at those tapered jeans. At the rowdy, swearing group of blondie mat and minahs. Shake your heads at the scantily clad minahs with ciggies in their hands. Disgust yourselves at the sight of young couples with their limbs intertwined in each other. These are what some would call the typical Malay protocol, the sampah masyarakats of the Metropolitan community. They may only be a handful, but they sure know how to hit it home. Why? Because, these utterly shameful acts were displayed within the heart of the Malay Muslim community itself: Geylang Serai. And, to make things even worse, during the holy month of the muslim calendar, the month of Ramadhan. An irony? Sad and ashamed? Be your own judge.