Pen of Passion

~vintage 12/2007

Once upon a time, there was a beautiful princess. Not only she was beautiful, she was also a true lover of music. She could not eat, play, or sleep without someone standing besides her playing her favorite tunes. When it was time for her to get married, the princess asked her father to organize a talent competition inviting the best and brightest musicians in the kingdom to come and compete. With the competition, she hoped to find her ideal husband–one that would enchant her with the most beautiful of music. Unfortunately, none of the competitors was able to impress her with his music. The princess was thoroughly disappointed.

On one starry night, she was sitting melancholily inside her private quarter when she heard a beautiful flute’s sound lingering outside her rear window. The music quickly conquered her heart. The princess hastily left her quarter, and headed toward the direction of the music. Unfortunately, she was not able to identify who the flutist was.

The music would return in each of the next ten nights. Even though she still did not know who the flutist was, the princess’ views on life took a dramatic turn. She started to enjoy life again. In fact, she was never happier than now. Her sudden change of attitude caught her parents’ attention. Seeing how much the princess was deeply in love with the unknown musician, her parents decided to help make her dream come true by having guards hiding around the castle–hoping to catch the mysterious musician. After much effort, the unknown flutist was apprehended. When the musician was brought to the princess, he wore an old and ragged attire and his face was covered by a mask.

The princess was ecstatic about seeing the person she had longed desired for the very first time. What she really wanted to see was his face, because it was the subject of her many beautiful dreams. When the flutist refused to remove his mask, the princess had no choice but to ask the guards to gently remove it. Unfortunately, what she saw was totally opposite of what she had romanticized. The man’s face was very repulsive. In fact, it was the most hideous thing the princess had ever witnessed. Disappointed and saddened, the princess had the guards sending the man away.

The next night, the beautiful music returned once again. Instead of bringing joys and happiness to the princess’ heart like usual, the music absolutely infuriated her. In her rage, she ordered the man executed. She also convinced her father, the king, to ban all flutists from playing their music in the kingdom. The princess, herself, would continue in her search for an ideal husband, a musician that is both handsome and talented. The end.

Commentary: The main lesson here is ugliness doesn’t pay. When someone says that he or she prefers “inner beauty” over “outer beauty”, you should not take it at face value.

Retold by Simon N.

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~vintage 12/2007

Part I

Michelle had always considered herself a lucky woman. She was married into a wealthy and highly respected family. She had two wonderful kids and a husband who loved her dearly. Her favorite hobby was gardening. She actually owned a flower shop, which was not too far away from her home.

Yet, Michelle’s perfect life had been showing a few minor cracks. Her husband was a businessman who often left home for long business trips. Rumors had been circulating that he was having an affair with a flight attendant. Despite the rumors, Michelle had complete confidence in her husband’s faithfulness; they had gone through so much together.

During a trip to the mall, Michelle ran into Jennifer — an old friend from college who recently moved into town. Their friendship quickly rekindled; they became the best of friends. It was through Jennifer that Michelle had her first casino experience. The experience was pretty forgettable, however. The people (in the casino) were just not her people, she thought.

When Michelle’s mother-in-law celebrated her 60^th birthday, she threw a huge birthday bash inviting all the friends and family to attend. Michelle was not invited to the party. Michelle and her mother-in-law had always had a tumultuous relationship. In fact, Michelle’s mother-in-law had never publicly recognized Michelle as her daughter-in-law. But since her husband still insisted that she should attend the party, Michelle reluctantly agreed.

It turned out that the decision was a grave mistake. Most people at the party showed an apparent aversion towards her. No one would talk to her or would even acknowledge her existence. She felt like an outsider. Meanwhile, her mother-in-law was busy introducing her son to some of her young female friends. Nothing could be more obvious.

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Part II

After the birthday bash, Michelle began to suffer from an acute depression. Sadly, her husband had to leave home once again for another business trip and thus was unable to console her. Michelle was confined to her large but empty home–lonely and isolated. Fortunately, her good friend Jennifer was once again there for her. Michelle was able to confide to her friend her deepest feelings and frustrations. To help relieving Michelle from her emotional problems, Jennifer would once again take her to the casino. Unlike the first time, Michelle felt much more comfortable this time around. The casino would eventually become her second home.

At first, Michelle actually won quite a bit of money. It would go downhill from there, however. She would soon exhaust all her funds and savings. Despite her debts, Michelle continued to gamble. She just couldn’t stop. To pay for her debts, Michelle was forced to mortgage both her car and the flower shop. Soon, she had to sell off all her jewelries.

At first, her husband didn’t suspect her of gambling. Over time, it would become obvious. When Michelle’s husband confronted her with regards to her gambling, she pleaded him for forgiveness and promised to stop gambling. Her husband took her at her words. In fact, he even settled all of her debts.

For a few months, it would appear as though Michelle had finally learn her lesson. She became a mother to her kids again, and her flower shop thrived. But on one fateful afternoon, Michelle left home abruptly after receiving a phone call from Jennifer. After not hearing anything from her for about roughly seven hours, Michelle’s husband and her two kids were getting really worried about her. They contacted the police and stayed up late to wait for any news of her.

At around 4 A.M., there was a sound at the door — entering was Michelle. Upon seeing her, her husband did not say a word. Her tired appearance had already betrayed her. The couple would divorce a month later. The husband sold the mansion and gave Michelle haft of the proceeds.

Had she finally learned her lesson? Michelle was last seen in a hospital recuperating from a severe fatigue–resulted from her spending too many hours gambling.

~Simon N.

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~vintage 12/2007

Memories are indisputably our most precious possessions. A person without memories is like a kite without a flying line. Memories, however, can be a double-edged sword. They can bring meanings and joys to one’s life, but they can also bring sadness and despairs. During the aftermath of the 2004 Tsunami, there were images of children gathering at a Red Cross facility hoping for any news of their parents - only to later learn that their loved ones had perished in raging waters. I was so touched by the story that I decided to keep a tap out for any follow-up stories.

A few months later, I found a news report that mentioned how there was an unexpected spike in the number of missing “tsunami” orphans. Apparently, many “tsunami” kids had decided to run away from the orphanages where they had been staying. The news, as depressed as it was, did not take me by surprise. There is an obvious reason for this.

Most of the kids, living in orphanages, are children who have been abandoned by their parents at an early age. Most of them do not have any memories of their parents. As a result, these orphans treat the orphanages - where they are being raised - as their homes and other kids at the facilities as parts of their family.

On the other hand, orphans whose parents died in accidents or disasters have spent most of their lives in the loving and care of their parents. They are likely to have a hard time making the transition. Every time they hear laughter, they would likely be reminded of all the good times they shared with their parents. Every time they hear someone crying, they would be reminded of their many tantrums and how their parents pacified them with hugs and kisses. Every time they lie on bed, they would be reminded of the many bedtime stories their parents had told them.

From time to time, some guests would visit the orphanages. These guests would hear about their stories and subsequently cast a sympathetic eye upon them. Unknown to the guests is the fact that these orphans absolutely despise their petty pity. They just want to be treated like everyone else. All they want to do is to run away from the painful memories, start a new life, and be free. In due course, some of them would do just that.

By day, these kids would wander the streets begging for money. By night, they would become “phantoms of the night” preying on bystanders’ wallets. On occasion, they would lurk outside the local ice-cream store stalking a family of three — sharing a big glass of ice cream sundae together. For a brief moment, they would see visions of the good times they shared with their deceased parents. But the experience is brief lasting only seconds; they are soon on their way.

At the end of the day, they would seek refuge under a bridge somewhere. There aren’t any beds or pillows for them to lie on. But it is just what they have always wanted. All the activities, during the day, have made their legs sore and their backs ache. Within minutes, they are soundly asleep. May be in their dreams, these poor orphans will finally escape the memories that have been haunting them. Sweet dreams…..little ones.

~Simon N.
~Image Credits: abc.net.au

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~vintage 12/2007

In the last 40 years, Japan has consistently been one of the top industrial nations in the world. If we are to seek for one word to describe Japan, the term “technology” immediately comes to mind. Among the developed countries, Japan has the highest annual rate of college graduates in the field of science and engineering. In fact, most of Japan’s exports are technology-related products including automobiles, electronics, and machineries. Japanese brands like Toyota, Sony, and Toshiba are well-known to world’s consumers.

While you are reading this, you may be thinking in your head how science must have played a dominating factor in the education of Japanese children. The truth is quite contrary. While the Japanese seek to stimulate their young minds with science and technology, a large chunk of the curriculum is devoted to arts and not science. The reason for this is simple. The Japanese believe that having a creative imagination is the key to becoming the next great engineer or master designer of technology. They also believe that exposing their youths to the arts is a great way to stimulate and promote one’s imagination and visual insights.

As a result, the first thing Japanese children learn in school is how to draw. They are encouraged to draw anything their imagination could come up with. Some draw mountains and grass fields. Others draw cartoon characters and robots. These drawings may look innocent and insignificant; the truth is that many of them have the potential to become the engine that drives future innovation and technology.

In the 1960s and 1970s, there was a series of manga (Japanese comics) depicting the development of highly intelligent robots that could be used in both warfare and civilian tasks. The idea was well-received at the time, generating a strong fascination of robots and smart technologies among Japanese kids. Today, Japan leads the world in robotics having more than half of the world’s active industrial robots.

Another form of arts that Japanese children are being exposed to is origami — the Japanese art of paper folding. Virtually everyone who lives in Japan is skilled at this art form. While most outsiders admire origami for its unique craft, we often overlook how much geometry and analytical skills are involved in implementing such an art.

Origami demands a great deal of details and meticulousness from the artist. Let face it, to turn a plain sheet of paper into something that is so realistic that it mirrors or even surpasses its real-life counterpart is masterful within itself. Having exposed to this amazing art, Japanese children are trained to think critically as well as to accumulate the valuable lessons of craftsmanship.

As technology continues to play an increasingly important role in today’s world, arts are disappearing from the education of our kids. In fact, many schools have chosen to cut their art programs in favor of technology-related programs. In my opinion, we should not give up in introducing our children to the arts. Instead, we should embrace arts and figure out a way to blend technology and arts together.

~Simon N. 2007

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~vintage 12/2007

A couple years ago, there was a tragic incident occurring in the jungle of Southeast Asia. In the years before the incident, there had been a lot of explorations taking place in the jungle. Many elephants had been driven out of their habitat, as a result. Some of the elephants ended up living near a farming village. At nighttime when no villagers were around, a few of them would sneak into the farm and make a nice feast out of the crops there. Since the elephants were so big in size, their unwanted visits left behind a lot of damages.

The villagers were not very happy about the intrusion. They hired a couple of professional elephant hunters to track down the culprits. The hunt was successful; the two elephants that were responsible for the damaged crops were killed.

For several days after the killing, the villagers enjoyed some very quiet time. They would, however, start to hear the sound of elephants mournfully trumpeting - coming from where the two elephants were killed. The sound would get louder and become more depressing in the days after. The villagers were quite concerned about this. They sent several elephant hunters to where the sound originated from to investigate the matter. Two days after the hunters were sent, there was still no sight of them coming back. The noise, on the other hand, was growing louder and louder. Alarmed, the villagers decided to put a barrier around the village just in case something bad might happen.

The next night started surprisingly calm with absolutely no noise. Many villagers thought the worst had passed, and went to sleep unguarded. For several hours, it would appear that they were right. As the clock struck near midnight, however, the whole village was shaken up by a thunderous noise. Before the villagers could realize what had happened, the walls around them were starting to collapse.

The villagers quickly evacuated from their homes. Unfortunately, they were greeted outside by numerous rampant elephants - which showed the defenseless villagers absolutely no mercy. Some villagers fall victims to the elephants’ indiscriminate tusks. Others were trampled to death. There were total chaos and bloodshed. Cries of fear and agony could be heard even a hundred miles away.

The next morning, the horde of ferocious elephants had already left the village; their destructive footprints, however, remained. The whole village had been totally annihilated. All the homes were destroyed, and the farmland was flattened. Odors of dead bodies consumed the air. The sun’s blazing heat added even more miseries to what had already been a grim travesty. For a village of several hundreds, only a few dozens survived. The clear victims were the children of the village. Many of them vanished in the stampede. Those survived will have to spend the rest of their lives as orphans without homes.

Mankind and Nature used to coexist peacefully. What has become of our world?

~Simon N.

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