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Date Posted: 21:13:16 04/02/02 Tue
Author: Mr Chao
Author Host/IP: styx.uwa.edu.au / 130.95.128.51
Subject: Once a Dream, Still Ever a Sweetness (fiction story)

[This is just a draft. Some grammar tidy up would be needed at its final version].

Once a Dream, Still Ever a Sweetness (fiction story)

Amongst my many dreams, this one, I don't know why, although never came true, but still brings comfort and sweetness to my mind. It dates back to the time when I was a young child and used to wander in my imagination about everything, just for nothing specific. My world at that time was quite as small as my backyard where I often stayed there for hours watching a hill nearby, also small. Despite that fact, somehow, "my" hill matched perfectly with its surroundings. The hill ran smoothly amidst the silence of everything, the silent houses after houses, the quiet roofs, the never-talking blue sky. Only the chimneys were a bit "naughty" when winter came by. But, I was type of an easy-going person, therefore, I still loved those chimneys, anyhow. In short, my hill was the best beauty of all time. So, there should be nothing wrong with the fact that I have spent hours and hours to admire such a treasure.

The adults thought "differently". More than "once upon a time", when I was watching my hill, I overheard my mum giggling with my dad, then she said:

- he looks like an artist, doesn't he?

My father did not answer, but, even though, at that time, I couldn't know what an artist is, I still found myself somewhat uneasy, so, I strongly disputed:

- no, I look like MYSELF.

Mum laughed, dad laughed! As if the "MYSELF" were something very funny. I didn't think so. That was only adult thinking, maybe. No wonder, my teacher always said: "AO films are not good for kids".

Then time passed.
Winter followed autumn
My hill's standing there statuesquely sad,
bearing a cold white figure on its shoulder.

Very cold. That year, the temperature went extremely low. As a consequence, most of the high trees on my hill were barely dead. I made my first "poem":

You trees have gone to heaven, oh! Why?
Sky cloud lost his friends, me too!

Very sad, in deed. However, I quickly recovered myself. It's better to be strong and healthy, that's what I thought, and thanks to such a right thinking, I was getting into a new and interesting adventure. Actually, there was a cooling off time; such as a glass of hot water needs time for cooling itself. As for me, from time to time, I still felt empty. It seemed that I didn't have enough tempo to swim up the stream. I was struggling. The once a driving force for me now vanished. Oh! I really missed my hill with all its trees which were used to spreading, and dancing their lovely branches up to the sky high above. Lovely, lovely little branch, how I treasure what you dance: sketching the sky, green on blue, tinkling a song "I and you".

In fact, I was like a driver who lost his direction. I knew I was boring, and at the same time I couldn't find a way out. Until one day when the winter became less severe then just a little thing happened. That little thing played a vital step, a turning point in my life: the hot water system of my house stopped working. My father couldn't afford calling a plumber, he were struggling too, because he had lost his job recently. On top of that, my elder sister was entering her first year at the university, costing a lot of money.

Therefore, at the weekend, my father had to fix the hot water system himself. I came for helping him a hand, of course. May God the almighty certify that we did virtually work as hard as horse, around the o' clock, all day through, and at the end, getting to nothing but the fact that "somehow" dad has broken the main tap. As for me, just adding one more "minor" toll, ...errr.....I .......was stuck in a chair, I mean, my head's stuck in the arm of an old iron chair!

In panic, my mother shouted, then she called for neighbour's help. People are always so helpful! Yes, they inundated my house, then started howling, chatting, suggesting, making around, and doing everything except releasing my head from the arm chair. One person even said:

- why don't we call an ambulance?
- oh! My.....dear, we don't need them, immediately one voice replied so.

And another one:

- why on earth could he put his head through that?
- I know, if he can put it in, he can take it out!!!!!!

Eventually, my father had to ring the plumber. Bravo the plumber, he solved every thing, from the tap, to the hot water and even my head. I escaped, uninjured. Only one complain, that is when the plumber politely proclaimed this to my father:

- by the way, you need to pay me 150 bucks all together

- for....for...WHAT...ttttttttttt,.....? my father was almost yelling in astonishment

- for plumber work, and for sawing the chair, you know, to day is Sunday, and I have to charge you overtime rate....

As for me, at that moment, I thought: "when I grow up, I will learn to be a plumber". It should be a must, because, that night when I was going to bed, I ....couldn't sleep (just for a while). Actually, I dreamed of becoming a handy man who can do it all, do it himself, and do it in high style also. What a pleasurable imagination it was. First, I looked up the ceiling then reasoned:

- hm....not bad, but, how about painting it royal blue, making it into an oceanic sky above with ..ah...just think,...ah...yes, ... a sky with an underlying background which can glow in the dark where I will decorate it with....anything I like

Gradually, it came to the floor, the windows, AND THIS WAS A REAL INVENTION when it came to the wall. It's just a matter of luck, perhaps, but I was convincingly sure that I thought it right. Look, why not just install an aquarium system into the wall. Such a built-in glass tube network may provide plenty of underwater scenarios, perfecte'. Here the corals, there the lobsters, then the giant crabs crawling amongst ivory tortoises and colourful fish, all of them are swimming SURROUNDING you magnificently. Oh, I had to get up and get stick to the design of this aquarium system right now, hadn't I. No, I fell asleep.

Out side,
the moon, the stars, and, and, and,
and my guardian angel
smiled.

What a beautiful dream. The thing is, beauty breeds beauty. Then, Perhaps, beauty could be filtered through my daily activities, who knows. I was not sure about that, but, so far, after the dream about the aquarium, I really found myself stimulated again. Now, day in and day out, my little brain did has something to "meditate" on. So, never underestimate a little boy, he could be "something", why not?. Well, at that period, more than one time, I received this praise from my ........friend: "wow, you are great". Very great, indeed, because, thanks to my suggestion, my friend could fix his fish tank by chewing gum. Plus, in another case, I had a chance to surprise everybody by ......hmmm....being gone missing. The reason = I got lost in the bush when looking for gold fish in an old stream. Not much to say about this gone missing event, but, the only thing I've learned through that experience is gold fish never lives in an old stream.

Hence and therefore, when my 9th birthday's about to come, I decided to negotiate in advance with my mum:

- mum, I like a gold fish for my birthday, can you buy me one, please
Mum said:

- yesssss....ah....NO, I don't think you can look after it properly.

No matter what I insisted, my mother didn't change her mind. After all, on my birthday, she gave me a Teddy bear, instead. So, once more, you can see "adult thinking" is of no good for kid. If you are still in doubt, just examine this fact: " what a Teddy bear can do for a little boy like me? I need a fish, not a bear". Any way, I did not complain at all. I had my own thinking to calm myself, that is a plan for an aquarium net work built in the wall. Believe it or not, at the end of the year, I got 255 drawings of my network with many shapes and sizes. Each night, before going to bed, I often said to my self: "just let it on paper first, when I grow up, I shall make it real".

Another winter come, another winter gone, I really not wanted to count them, but, one way or another, somehow, it happened to be ...in a spring time day, a marvellous day with warm and cosy sun rays shedding their brightest glory all over the place in my backyard, that I could see my dream half come true. I got a gold fish, at last.

That day, I swapped my old Teddy bear for a gold fish of my ......girl friend who's actually just a classmate. She was one year older than me. The deal was made perfectly. She and me, all were very happy. I took the gold fish right into my .....bedroom, yeah,..you know, that was an instinct, or I was simply haunted by the aquarium network, I couldn't tell.

I couldn't tell, and, neither I knew that this was the first time I had to face a great loss. Let all the star stop shining, let every corner of the earth darken, because, I was in trauma, my fish jumped out of the tank, and a pussy cat was nearby!!!! Sigh.

(to be continued)

Mr Chao

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