Here I Go (story assignment based on "Innocent Feathers" and "Sailor Jupiter Moves Out" scene assignments)

The illuminating eye rested between two islands. It was draining its energy bit by bit as it sank down beneath the horizon. Nothing got better than chilling at Tanjung Aru beach on a Sunday evening.

“Daddy, can I have some more of the coconut water please?” I asked.

Peter grinned and handed his six-years-old daughter a big, green coconut with a straw inserted through a rough sliced opening. I sat the delicious fruit on my lap and took a long gradual sip of the sweet, refreshing fluid from its inner shell. My taste buds leaped to paradise as the honey-like flavour, colourless water traveled from the tip of the straw to my mouth.

“It’s a beautiful view from here, isn’t it?” my mother, Helen smiled.

She gazed at the calm ocean in front of us. After the sip, I breathed in the rich salty air and wiggled the soft brown sand off my toes. The sun was a pale lemon with amber shades painted the sky; the waves were a glossy reflection of the sunset’s hues. This was where I wanted to be, lying on the wooden beach chairs with my beloved parents while indulging in the Malaysian awarding scenery…

BANG! The sound of a gun wakes me up from my dream. Reality immediately hit against me like a tidal wave. Instead of looking at the evening beauty from the same spot, I turn my back to where the resort is located. Another gunshot echoes from the first floor of the hotel.What’s happening? That doesn’t sound like fireworks! A warm breeze suddenly whooshes against me that carry my high ponytail to float in midair. It is fast and rough like a charging stallion; it sends my back tingling like an electric shock.

I immediately sprint to the hotel and up a spiral staircase. As I reach to the second floor which is the lobby, I feel like the building is going to collapse into a cluster of debris. A woman in a purple T-shirt and a white maxi skirt lies motionless on the marble floor. The shirt is stained by a heavy crimson colour; it travels down onto her skirt before ending into a pool on the floor. I recognize the length of the woman’s hair from the back. Spikes of a hedgehog begin to crawl on my back as I get closer to the victim. Once I walk to the front, I can’t believe my own eyes. Helen Lin, my dear mother, has lost her next second of life.

From my back, I hear a sinister laugh. Mason, my stepfather is leaning against the concierge desk with a black gun in his right hand. His eyes are a demon black.

“I thought you’re in jail!” I exclaim in disbelief.

The psycho twirls his gun playfully before tucking it into the pocket of his brown trousers.

“That’s partially correct,” he replies, “but I didn’t end up in those shitty police cars.”

“What are you talking about?” I gasp, “I saw you got arrested with those men behind my school yesterday.”

“You were there, weren’t you?” he frowns, “I didn’t expect you to ruin my match.”

“Listen, Mason! I don’t know what you’re up to but you’ve done a whole lot of crap. You use animals as violent entertainment and you quit your job just to go to clubs every night.” I spill out, “I even see you slapping my mother and asking her to give you her allowance just to buy beer.”

“So what? I don’t even give a damn about everything.” He fishes into his other pocket and takes out a thin bundle of purple 100 Malaysian dollars, “Thanks to your soft-hearted mother, these babies belong to me now.”

He waves the pile of cash in the air as if he has won the lottery. He stops in his sixth wave and spots a note sticking in the pile. I watches him taking it out and reading it with a numb expression.

“I knew it! It’s just a piece of junk!” he says and tosses the paper towards me. Without hesitation, I pick it up and read,

            My dear Pheline,

            You’ve grown into an amazing young woman. Now it’s the time for you to find your own journey. No matter what happens, Peter and I will always be by your side and we will be cheering for you as you strive to conquer the mountains and the oceans. I’m glad to say that I’ve finally can save this amount for your new school. Take care and good luck!

Mom

My sight melts into a cloudy view as I struggle to hold back my tears. I wish that this won’t happen so that I can thank her and hug her and remind her that I love her very much…I don’t blame her for marrying Mason in the first place, I am just grateful to see her all smiling and spreading her love constantly to me and my dad. If only she can be resurrected…if only I can see her precious, reassuring smile again…

Blood race madly in my veins as I stare at Mason, feeling like a grenade prepared to blast his hideous, horrible smirk. He pulls out his gun again and points at me. He is about to shoot when I suddenly dodge away and grab hold of his hand. With a quick move illustrated automatically in my head, I kick him in the stomach and punch him in the face. Behind me, a semicircle of bewildered foreigners are staring and gasping like spectators in a circus.

“I bet you don’t know that I have a black belt in karate, asshole!”

As I am about to reach for the gun he has dropped, he grits his teeth and snatches it from his side. He aims his weapon at me, ready to fire.

“Hold it right there!” a policeman approaches from nowhere.

A few more policemen run up from a flight of stairs with guns rested on the top of their shoulder.

“You’re under arrest,” the policeman says, “Drop your weapon please!”

Mason raises his hands up for half a second. He suddenly makes a dash away from the concierge table and down to the spiral stairs to the bottom floor. The lead policeman gets his weapon ready and successfully shoots right at Mason’s back. Seeing the enemy got defeated has caused the cloak of shame and misery to be taken away from my body.

“Pheline! Are you okay?” another voice startles me.

 As I try to lift myself up, my peripheral vision catches a girl with familiar dark brown eyes and silky black hair that reaches to her waist. My best friend, Solange runs towards me when she sees me grasping the table for support.

“Solange! What are you doing here?” I exclaim.

“I was tagging along my uncle Benjamin while suddenly he got an urgent message from his walkie talkie! I’m glad that we arrive on time!” she replies with a relieved smile. I then remember that her uncle is the chief policeman of the Tanjung Aru police headquarters.

Solange helps me to get up. She notices my mother lying in the middle of the lobby and shares the same sorrowful face as I have.

I don’t know whether it’s just me but I can feel Mom’s embrace surrounding me. The world looks better than the episode last night; the sun releases fantastic ribbons of light that automatically heals the small crack in my heart.

Solange shortly walked towards me to give me a comforting hug. It reminds me of how blessed I am to have her who loves me. Her hilarious make-up stories from Big Bang Theory will be my ideal remedy, and I can’t beg for anything better than going away from home with her. Dad is the one who told me first that no matter what situation I am in, there are always people who care for me. After he passed away due to stroke when I was nine, I would always visualize his face to draw his presence in my soul. And now that mom’s gone too, I know that she’s joyfully reunited with dad in the spiritual realm and she’s watching over me to see me hunting for a milestone.

“Ready to go? You wouldn’t want to miss your flight!” she said.

I return her gaze with a smile, “This is it! My own story is about to be written!”

“You already are writing it! You just haven’t got to your real adventure yet!”

She’s right, my story has started but the part where I paint myself with new colours hasn’t arrived.

The sound of an airplane roars behind us. We switch our view from the islands to a Malaysian Airlines mechanical bird which glides above the resort, heading to east. The international airport which is in this direction and fifteen minutes away from the resort signals me to get ready for my trip.

Before we head to the parking lot, I am stopped by a sudden gust of air. This time, the breeze that blows against my face is cool and generous. I look at the nostalgic live postcard, realizing that my parents are saying “good luck” through this natural messenger.  Maybe the warm breeze I felt yesterday was Dad’s warning…

As we walk away from the beach, I swear that I hear sweet laughter chimed from Dad, Mom, and the six-year-old me.

Do I consider myself an adult? (My first thoughts of being 21-October 14 2014)

Life is hard. Living is hard. Even being a human hard. I'm not being negative here, I'm just a little troubled with what people had said of me turning 21, the age of adulthood. I'm not sure whether that's a big deal. I remember a few friends remind me that age is just a number. Age makes me think that I'm getting older and I'm doomed, but that's not what life is about.

I remember an inspirational quote from my favourite fitness instructor Cassey Ho, the Youtuber who is the creator of Blogilates. She says "change is coming". It takes time to improve in something, something I want to commit myself to make the best out of myself. Change plays a big part of life, and it may sounds scary, but it helps me to take steps to a new perspective in discovering myself. To me, change may mean that I've made new friends and forget about my old friends or adapting to a new country and forgetting about my roots. That's not going to happen. Even though I'm in a new year, a new home, and a new chapter of my personal memoir, I'm trying my best to improve myself but also to maintain my personalities and character. It sounds hard, but I hope that I won't be forgotten and to be respected by the new people I meet and connect.

So ask yousrelf, what does the word "change" means to you? Is it good or is it bad?

There are some surprises that approach to me this year. I don't know whether this is a blessing from God or is it his secret to show that something good is happening to my last year of Douglas College.

-My memoir chapter "Rooster Alarm" was shared by five random Google followers! I was super surprised when I first found this out on my dashboard.  This is the first time I got recognition from strangers online (readers who like my work and share them to other people). I would like to say thank you so much to those who are the followers and please keep sharing! It means a lot to me!
http://towardsthesun-beneaththesnow.blogspot.ca/2014/08/rooster-alarm-new-memoir-chapter-about.html

- There is a surprising result of my fiction writing assignment "Innocent Feathers". Turns out that my class loved my piece that I received positive comments with a little bit of feedback about the time jump at the end. And my instructor gave me a full 10 out of 10! I was like...WHOA! How did that happen? This was the first time I got a high mark in creative writing! Like ever! The highest grade I've gotten in my writing courses was an A-! So this A+ gem got me a little flabbergasted but it's also a boost for me to make a good impression on my first full story assignment which is due soon.
http://thetruemichelehii.blogspot.ca/2014/10/innocent-feathers-setting-and-imagery.html
And then, when I took a photo of the result and posted it on my Facebook page (I didn't post it on Instagram because my phone has crappy amount of space), I never knew that I've got the highest number of likes in my entire Facebook history. In just two to three days, my photo was thumbs-ed up by forty plus friends, and I couldn't imagine how supportive my friends and family are. Usually when I post something, the updates are ignored. So when this new phenomenon of my life happens in the blink of an eye, I realize that there will be a time for me to shine. I'm not forever silent or forever isolated. I always feel isolated, but I keep reminding myself that I'm not invisible. If the people I've met pull me off the dark, then I'll remember that I'm loved and needed.

- Surprisingly (again), I've made new friends. Not like acquaintances who I only say hi and say one of two sentences in group work, but people who I can sit with and help out with homework and laugh off at jokes and having a blast learning together. These are the new group of people I'm looking for in Canada, not racism or prejudice or discrimination, but a community who is colour blind and take in one another as family. In Japanese class and Communication class, I've found people who I can push myself to talk. It's actually not a bad thing. Once I'm letting my aegis to crack and hopefully shatter, I'll no longer feel insecure. Sadly, those people comes and goes. Every semester, new people comes in and that makes a whole lot harder if we got separated after four months of seeing and sticking together. I haven't found a new group of people who I call friends for more than a year or even a long period of time like my friends back in Malaysia, but I think there's a chance when I can see those people even when we got separated. I don't like separation, I prefer connection.

Something tells me deep inside that this age is a traditional stereotype that I want to break. I mean "You're 21, that means you're an adult" belief my mother told me...is not entirely true! I'm still having a blurry mind on what's hidden behind the harsh reality. I may be a late bloomer and I don't know when will be the time for me to survive, but I have faith that one day I'll become a shooting star, gliding my way through independence and freedom. I have to admit, I'm still a kid. And here's a guilty pleasure, I hate growing up. But that's something I can't rewind. This is life, and that's how it is. Time is ticking, and I can't possibly beg Peter Pan or Tinker Bell to use magic to turn back time. The only thing to get out of this is to accept where I am and see where time take flight.

So here's something I think it's important in the world today. Don't think in an old-fashion or traditional way. Don't stick to one culture or one norm or even one thing. There are various things to explore and the world is for us to expand our minds and to change our perspectives. When you're in a new environment like me, learn to adapt to it and accept the culture. You'll never know how many years you will live or how much change you've become. Try involve in the "cultural identity search" because different norms or beliefs or even matters can blend in to become your own definition of culture, or even a new version of yourself.

I hope you like reading this new post, and don't forget to live this day, live this life! =)

Btw, thank you all for your birthday wishes! I didn't exactly have made a wish while blowing the candle because I was still too sleepy after cramming with assignments and Japanese exercises for tomorrow's midterm. But if I get to make a wish, I'm looking forward to a new change in myself as well as making the best out of my last year in Douglas College.

Innocent Feathers (Setting and Imagery Assignment for Fiction Writing class-Oct 2014)

The city of Kota Kinabalu was taken over by the ferocious solar sphere in the cloudless blue heaven. Under the typical humid Malaysian weather, I heard noisy chatters behind the school garden. There was a small forest behind Tung Sang Secondary School, and it was rare to see people roaming around that area.

I tiptoed on the grass like a lioness stalking after its prey. While pretending to be a ninja, I was sure I saw my stepdad’s dark blue cap floating across the line of gigantic shady trees.

“Sedia….mula! (Get set….go!) ” a man shouted in Malay.

I hurriedly climbed up the middle tree to get a better view. As I stopped on a firm branch, I felt like I was engulfed by a dark shadow summoned by Sailor Moon’s villian, Queen Beryl. A group of men between ages 20 to 50 formed a large ring, cheering and yelling at a couple of chickens which were on the centre of the human circle. The spectators were all Malay, brown-tanned and big dark brown eyes with translucent hues of excitement and rebel.

One of the chickens was a brilliant orange with black tail feathers. It literally flew in midair and pounced onto its opponent who was a pure white fellow. And right away, I spotted my stepfather, Mason, in his blue cap; he stood a few feet behind the orange and black chicken.

My stepfather’s chicken flapped its wings like a hummingbird while lifting its boney legs off the ground. It kicked right at its opponent’s breast. A white star suddenly gleamed on the chicken’s left leg. I squinted to take a closer look. Did I just saw something metal? The sun was kind enough to reflect a beam of light onto the object tied around its right leg. Sure enough, a freshly-sharpened curvy blade was attached at the back of the leg. That was just cruel! Why would people do something inhumane? And the next thing I knew, the white chicken had an artificial spur tied around each leg as well. If this was Satan’s strategy to turn men evil towards animals, then I had to do something…for God’s sake!

I looked up into the sky and murmured, “What should I do, Lord? Should I get the principal or crash into the match to grab the chickens?” I looked at the horrific sight again and hoped that I would hear a holy whisper. The sun radiated its summer heat that made the scene to look like a mirage in the middle of the Sahara desert. And I thought I had this big splat of sweat stained on the back of my school uniform. But, the tropical weather wasn’t the only thing that caused me to be drenched in the icky, stinky colourless paint. I couldn’t stand watching the white chicken suddenly gather courage to kick the other candidate; it even used its beak to poke at the opponent’s head. Mason’s city-known champion swiftly kicked its target’s breast once more, leaving a tiny stream of blood.

            “Pheline Wong? What are you doing up there?” a voice startled me.

I immediately turned around to see whether it was one of those nasty junior boys who liked hitting on senior girls. To my relief, Principal Matthew Liu was standing near a big rose bush in the garden. Suddenly, my right foot nearly slipped and I quickly grabbed hold on the tree trunk to keep myself standing on the branch.

“Are you okay?” the school’s “Second Father” gasped.

“Y…yeah!” I replied.

The cockfight match was way too loud that I believe the students in the nearby classrooms could hear it. Principal Matthew came near the wall of trees and looked at me with his eyebrows raised in curiosity. Could it be that God has arranged all this to help me? Oh wait…that’s it!

“Can you guys carry on with what you’re doing somewhere else?” he asked as he walked through a small wire gate between the school fences.

The crowd turned their heads with their annoyed masks on. As I crouched behind them, I saw my stepfather stepping forward with arms akimbo. I removed the blades from the chickens, and held them under my arms.

“You’re under arrest!” a different voice froze the atmosphere.

I shielded my eyes from the blinding sunlight with my right palm. A policeman stood next to Principal Matthew.  I looked at clumps of chicken feathers scattered on the forest soil; the trees surrounded me with a grateful embrace.