We were always eating expired things. Milk, bread, biscuits, cake. We forgot about them as they sat around the house and just as they had gone bad, we put them in our mouths. Chocolates I brought back with me from Australia, cheeses in last year's Christmas hamper, juice from the last time someone decided to go grocery shopping. We didn't always realize they tasted funny – not everything curdles and a two-month-old orange can be just as sweet. When we did, it was usually too late. Sometimes it wasn't. We finished what we had started anyway.

~ Cheryl Julia Lee

Cheryl Julia Lee Chocolates Dated Expired Expired Things Food Journal Life Life Lessons Love Poems Poetry Singapore Literature

At its core, the collection is built around a very wise line from a Beatles song: I want to hold your hand. I want to hold your hand with no further expectations. I want to hold your hand instead of telling you I understand when I don’t. I want to hold your hand although we don’t always get along. I want to hold your hand despite the calluses, scratches, and scars that get in the way. I want to hold your hand knowing I’ll have to let it go one day.

~ Cheryl Julia Lee

Cheryl Julia Lee Calluses Dated Expectations Expired Expired Things Food Home Love Poetry Singapore Literature Scars Scratches