Sunday, May 13, 2007
If Only
Photographs. They can make you cry or laugh. They can make you happy or sad. Sometimes, they help you relive that moment which may put a smile on your face or an ache in your heart. They make you think and wonder about the past, present and future. I, for one, truly believe the saying that pictures speak a thousand words.
It was just about a week ago when I came across old albums during my monthly spring cleaning. I ended up spending four hours crying and laughing over all the memories instead of actually packing and tidying the place.
16/11/1990. I was barely a month old and I was back at Gleneagles’ Hospital. No, it was not because I fell ill or any of that sort. My parents had brought me to visit their good friends who had just given birth to a baby girl. Alyssa Dhaliwal was her name. At that moment, when I was looking at the photograph, I sniggered to myself. I was thinking about how people used to tell me, “Oh yes! I have known her since like forever!” In actual fact, they might have probably known each other for five years. But I bet no one could beat Alyssa and I. Up till this day, we have been best friends and are totally inseparable. We celebrate our birthdays together, fought over boys, joined the church choir together, went overseas for holidays together and well, done almost everything together! We might be miles away from each other now but I believe that how ever far apart we are from each other; nothing can break the strong bond that we share.
22/7/1996. I can still remember how much I hated that kindergarten uniform of mine. It was a hideous light green with dark green checks all over it. However, that did not stop me from having the biggest smile on my face. Why? You may ask. I was at a school excursion in the zoo and my teacher had partnered me with the boy of my dreams! I thought he was the only boy who did not seem to be contaminated with germs. Well, that was what I thought then. The other boys were mean and insensitive. There was once when a boy stabbed me in the back for no reason at all and I had to get three stitches for that. And how could I forget, Russell the rascal. He used to run up to me every week after school and give me a sloppy kiss on the lips. I would scream my lungs out, shove him away and complain to his older sister. She would yell at him but it always went in one ear and out the other. I really wonder which schools my classmates went to and how they are doing. And that if I was to meet them in the coming years, would I recognize them?
19/5/2002. It was the annual sports day and everybody was wearing their house shirts. Some housemates and I were warming ourselves up for the cheerleading competition. It was a really nerve wrecking experience, having to perform in front of the whole school. We had practiced very hard for the event but there was still the fear that we might screw it up. We came in second anyway, but I still thought we did fantastic. I miss my primary school days. Life was so carefree and studies were the least of my worries. Although my school was small compared to many others, I was very fond of it. It had a cozy feeling to it and it was like a second home to me. It had a really gorgeous garden in the middle of it. On the far right hand corner of the garden sat a pond with a statue of Mother Mary standing over it. My classroom that year was right next to the pond and it was always pleasant to hear the water flowing from the pond’s fountain. There was at least four wooden shelters with benches around the garden. There was also a marble table and stools placed beneath a coconut tree in the centre of the garden. It was every student’s favourite hang out spot during breaks. The garden was given a name which I felt suited it perfectly. It was called ‘The Garden of Peace’. On this very day, the lovely garden is gone together with the rest of the school. It had been demolished a year ago and renovated into a monstrous four storey building. And that can never measure up to the simple primary convent I once attended.
31/8/2006. It was the last day of school before we were left on our own to prepare for the ‘O’ level examinations. It was the exams we, the teachers and students, had been working towards for four years and how well we did in it determined our future.
I belonged to a really tight clique in school. We used to stay back in school to finish up homework together or walk to the nearby shopping centre after school for lunch. In classes, we always sat together at the back of the classroom. We would sneak in snacks into the classroom and share it among ourselves during lessons. For our last year in school, we wanted to show our gratitude and appreciation to the teachers. So on ‘Teachers’ Day’, we did a song and dance performance together for the teachers. Our time and effort paid off as we received many compliments from the teachers, telling us that they enjoyed the performance very much. We called ourselves ‘The Goon Crew’. ‘Goon’ meaning silly in Malay and ‘Crew’ obviously meaning group. As the name suggests, we were a bunch of silly people. We laughed at everything, cracked silly jokes and played silly pranks on each other. All in all everything we did kept us together.
We did not let the worries of exams get to us. We treasured our time, reminded each other about the memories we shared and took a lot of pictures. Some of us cried too, knowing that we were all going separate ways and that friendships might drift apart. But we made each other a promise, gave each other hope that we would make our friendship work and lasts. And I am proud to say that all of us are still in touch and are as close as ever.
I opened my eyes and found myself lying on my bed. I must have been so engrossed with the photographs, that I took a really long walk down memory lane and fell asleep. It felt good though, taking some time off from homework and thinking about the fine times I have had. If only there was something better than photographs. If only there was some way to turn back the clock and live our memories.
Photographs. They can make you cry or laugh. They can make you happy or sad. Sometimes, they help you relive that moment which may put a smile on your face or an ache in your heart. They make you think and wonder about the past, present and future. I, for one, truly believe the saying that pictures speak a thousand words.
It was just about a week ago when I came across old albums during my monthly spring cleaning. I ended up spending four hours crying and laughing over all the memories instead of actually packing and tidying the place.
16/11/1990. I was barely a month old and I was back at Gleneagles’ Hospital. No, it was not because I fell ill or any of that sort. My parents had brought me to visit their good friends who had just given birth to a baby girl. Alyssa Dhaliwal was her name. At that moment, when I was looking at the photograph, I sniggered to myself. I was thinking about how people used to tell me, “Oh yes! I have known her since like forever!” In actual fact, they might have probably known each other for five years. But I bet no one could beat Alyssa and I. Up till this day, we have been best friends and are totally inseparable. We celebrate our birthdays together, fought over boys, joined the church choir together, went overseas for holidays together and well, done almost everything together! We might be miles away from each other now but I believe that how ever far apart we are from each other; nothing can break the strong bond that we share.
22/7/1996. I can still remember how much I hated that kindergarten uniform of mine. It was a hideous light green with dark green checks all over it. However, that did not stop me from having the biggest smile on my face. Why? You may ask. I was at a school excursion in the zoo and my teacher had partnered me with the boy of my dreams! I thought he was the only boy who did not seem to be contaminated with germs. Well, that was what I thought then. The other boys were mean and insensitive. There was once when a boy stabbed me in the back for no reason at all and I had to get three stitches for that. And how could I forget, Russell the rascal. He used to run up to me every week after school and give me a sloppy kiss on the lips. I would scream my lungs out, shove him away and complain to his older sister. She would yell at him but it always went in one ear and out the other. I really wonder which schools my classmates went to and how they are doing. And that if I was to meet them in the coming years, would I recognize them?
19/5/2002. It was the annual sports day and everybody was wearing their house shirts. Some housemates and I were warming ourselves up for the cheerleading competition. It was a really nerve wrecking experience, having to perform in front of the whole school. We had practiced very hard for the event but there was still the fear that we might screw it up. We came in second anyway, but I still thought we did fantastic. I miss my primary school days. Life was so carefree and studies were the least of my worries. Although my school was small compared to many others, I was very fond of it. It had a cozy feeling to it and it was like a second home to me. It had a really gorgeous garden in the middle of it. On the far right hand corner of the garden sat a pond with a statue of Mother Mary standing over it. My classroom that year was right next to the pond and it was always pleasant to hear the water flowing from the pond’s fountain. There was at least four wooden shelters with benches around the garden. There was also a marble table and stools placed beneath a coconut tree in the centre of the garden. It was every student’s favourite hang out spot during breaks. The garden was given a name which I felt suited it perfectly. It was called ‘The Garden of Peace’. On this very day, the lovely garden is gone together with the rest of the school. It had been demolished a year ago and renovated into a monstrous four storey building. And that can never measure up to the simple primary convent I once attended.
31/8/2006. It was the last day of school before we were left on our own to prepare for the ‘O’ level examinations. It was the exams we, the teachers and students, had been working towards for four years and how well we did in it determined our future.
I belonged to a really tight clique in school. We used to stay back in school to finish up homework together or walk to the nearby shopping centre after school for lunch. In classes, we always sat together at the back of the classroom. We would sneak in snacks into the classroom and share it among ourselves during lessons. For our last year in school, we wanted to show our gratitude and appreciation to the teachers. So on ‘Teachers’ Day’, we did a song and dance performance together for the teachers. Our time and effort paid off as we received many compliments from the teachers, telling us that they enjoyed the performance very much. We called ourselves ‘The Goon Crew’. ‘Goon’ meaning silly in Malay and ‘Crew’ obviously meaning group. As the name suggests, we were a bunch of silly people. We laughed at everything, cracked silly jokes and played silly pranks on each other. All in all everything we did kept us together.
We did not let the worries of exams get to us. We treasured our time, reminded each other about the memories we shared and took a lot of pictures. Some of us cried too, knowing that we were all going separate ways and that friendships might drift apart. But we made each other a promise, gave each other hope that we would make our friendship work and lasts. And I am proud to say that all of us are still in touch and are as close as ever.
I opened my eyes and found myself lying on my bed. I must have been so engrossed with the photographs, that I took a really long walk down memory lane and fell asleep. It felt good though, taking some time off from homework and thinking about the fine times I have had. If only there was something better than photographs. If only there was some way to turn back the clock and live our memories.
yeap.so thats the short story i had to write.hope you guys were engaged.ha.yeah.
11:17 PM
Breaking the Habit!