The World of Tai Tai

On 19th November 2012, I visited Sabah and joined a local tour on a trip to Kinabalu Park, a world heritage site that boasts the famous canopy walk and the Poring Hot Springs.   The drive up the park took nearly three hours. The undulating road wound around the Crocker Range like a coiling serpent. The higher we went, the wider expanse of emerald vegetation spread before us. Layer after layer of mountains rose like waves, becoming one with the sky in the distance. My companions were a female Kadazan tour guide and a four-member British family. With their humorous banter, they made the bumpy ride an enjoyable one. When we reached the park, I was blown away by its beauty. It was surrounded by mountains in varying hues of green. The sight offered me a welcome respite from the concrete forest in which I lived. To go to the point where the canopy walk began, we had to hike a slope. Its steepness took a toll on my overweight body. I fell behind my companions, unable to keep...

Today is Mooncake Festival.  As usual, I celebrate it with Papa and Ah Hui in a low key manner.  We have a simple dinner of one dish and one soup.  The steamed chicken that Papa cooked is a little raw and he asks Ah Hui to blanch it in the soup to make it more cooked.  We eat the succulent chicken with relish.  The soup complements the chicken well.  Each of us has at least two bowls of it. We do not eat moon cakes as dessert after dinner.  The moon cakes sold in the market are too sweet for our liking.  We do not light lanterns too.  We find it satisfying enough to celebrate the festival in the presence of one another.  I wonder how Weng Weng, my younger brother, celebrates the festival with his wife and daughter.  I have a hunch that they are now celebrating it with fun and merriment. Mama is alone in Seria at the moment.  Has she had her dinner?  Does her best friend Ah How celebrate the festival with her tonight?...

“Who are you?” Grandma asked for the 100 th time. Everyone in the room heaved a sigh of despair. Everyone, except Grandpa. It was about two years ago when Grandma met with an accident. Actually, we all did, daddy, mummy and I. But Grandma was the only one who got injured. Before the accident happened she had been complaining about her seat belt. Her exact words were: “It squeezes everything on me.” We all groaned and begged her to say no more. It turned into a joke and we were all laughing together. We let her unbuckle her seat belt and didn’t think much about it. Daddy was a very careful driver and it was bright daylight so the chances of encountering accidents were almost none. We were on our way back home from church when the car in front of us slowed down for no apparent reason. Daddy was about to press the honk when suddenly, a car from behind sped right into our bumper. Our seat belts tugged and held us back. But poor Grandma’s head knocked onto the headrest of the fr...

“Who are you?” I asked the stranger who had suddenly approached me. “Why does he seem so familiar?” I asked myself. That stranger, that old man. I saw something in his eyes. His vulnerability. Why does he seem so sad? That strange man came up to me while I was having coffee and he left me an envelope.   My birthday was today and I assumed that it was a prank from some of my friends.   I decided to ignore it but curiosity compelled me to open it. I pulled out the contents and was bewildered. What are these photos? Who are these babies? They looked so familiar. In each picture was a pair of twins, not the same gender but the same facial features. The date on each picture was exactly the same as my birthday date. Do I know these people? So here’s the thing, I came from a broken family. I remembered vividly that my parents had always been quarrelling. I was so young when they divorced. I was not able to understand anything. Their shouting made me shudder under my blanket....

It is the night before my birthday.   I am really excited because I will be turning fifteen the next day.   Turning fifteen is a big challenge for every teenager.   I will be facing more obstacles in life – sadness, betrayal, friends that come and go, but most importantly, I’ll be sitting for my PMR in another nine months.   It’s not easy to be a teenager.                 Three…Two…One…It is midnight and my phone rings to my best friend, Tatiana’s phone call.   Before even letting me to say hello, she sings me the birthday song.   I am so happy to have her as a friend.                 “Happy birthday, Anne!   You are fifteen already.   Congratulations for having gone through fourteen years of ups and downs, and tears and joy.   It is a pleasure being your best friend.   I love you ...