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Untukmu, Malaysia
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Preface“Writing is a struggle against silence.” – Carlos Fuentes
Selamat sejahtera,
It gives me great pleasure to bring to closure theCICAK’s second annual
writing competition. Themed “Young Malaysians You Need to Know” and held
in conjunction with Malaysia’s 50th year of independence, the competition
aimed to document Malaysian heroes, liberally defined, between the ages of
12 to 29 who have persevered against all odds to succeed, or have helped
their friends, family, society, or country in unique ways.
These are our sincerest hopes: that by going through the rigorous process
of interviewing and writing about heroes, participants have not only been
able to sharpen their creative writing and journalistic skills, but have also
gained a new appreciation for heroism, leadership, service and courage.
That this book may be an avenue for reflection and introspection; that it
may also be a platform on which to highlight the unsung achievements and
sacrifices of Malaysian youth.
That the sharing of these stories will in turn inspire other youth to do the
same; to mobilise a new generation of Malaysian heroes.
That through our diverse collection of stories, readers may gain insights
into the rich tapestry of Malaysian society: the challenges, the values, the
ambitions and the triumphs of our youth.
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That readers may perceive the great compassion, humanity and empathy
inherent in Malaysian youth and the resulting effort, action and passion as
indicative of a generation worthy of ourselves.
This project could not have been brought to fruition without the
continuous support from many individuals and institutions. We are eternally
grateful to our judges: Marina Mahathir, Jeff Ooi, Poh Si Teng and Nicholas
Wong, The Star, Inkyhands, KOMAS, the Swarthmore Foundation, and most
importantly, our participants.
Syabas,
Andrew Loh
Special Projects Manager
theCICAK
November 2007
(I hope you had fun, because I did!)
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ContentsTough being a competitive swimmer … 3By Alynna Wong HERO: Tania Lee
Terima kasih , Doktor … 7By Chong Jun Ai HERO: Foo Chee Hoe
A hundred times … 12By Chong Yong Wei HERO: Tan Bing Xuan
He loves Malaysia … 17By Chow Yee Hoong HERO: Yeoh Chen Chow
The happy child … 21By Clement Chan HERO: Brandon Chan
Her father’s voice … 24By Debbie Wong HERO: Sarah Lasung
‘I’ is saya , and ‘name’ is nama … 28By Evelyn Wong HERO: Elaine Leong
As bright as the straight-A scorers … 34By Khaidatul Zabidi HERO: Khairun Zabidi
Saving the environment one reef at a time … 39By Kok Shiau Lee HERO: Yoke Lee
You passed! You did it! (A letter to my hero) … 45By Lim Wei Yun HERO: Wong Chung Heng
He became my ears … 49By Yvonne Foong HERO: Reuben
The porter … 54By Crissy Wong HERO: Teresa
About the competition … 58Results … 60Learn more about theCICAK … 61
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Tough being a competitive swimmer
By ALYNNA WONG
Photo of Tania Lee
Chlorine water is her blood, purple is her favourite colour, and
chocolate is her drug. Ice cream is her world, a smile makes her day and her
memories are the story of her life. These are the things that describe my
unsung heroine.
Her name is Tania Lee.
On the March 30, 1990, a baby girl was born. Tania wasn’t born into
the most fortunate of families. Her father had worked many jobs before
becoming a subcontractor and her mother was a housewife.
Little did anyone know that someday she was going to make a
difference in my life.
2
Since a young age, Tania loved playing with water. She often played at
the pool with her younger siblings. At the age of ten, she started her first
swimming class. Tania was a fast learner and after just two months she had
finished her classes and mastered all the strokes. Soon, she was joining
swimming competitions. At her first competition, she most unexpectedly won
the gold medal. This motivated her to go further.
But Tania’s life wasn’t always smooth sailing. The greatest challenge
she faced was with her own mother. Initially, her mother wasn’t very happy
with Tania spending so much time training because she had planned for
Tania to have piano lessons instead. This caused a great deal of conflict
between them.
During some of the swim meets, instead of encouraging her, Tania’s
mother would scold her and tell her she was wasting her time. It was one of
the hardest moments in Tania’s life. She resolved to train as hard as ever in
order to prove she could do it; to win and make her mother proud.
Throughout her swimming career, Tania trained under many coaches.
Each coach had his own way of training and she benefited from all of them.
From her experience, she feels that coaches from China have the strictest of
training methods, while the Russians are more understanding. Malaysian
coaches are the most reasonable coaches of all; they focus on the swimming
and always encourage you.
Swimming is not all sunshine and rainbows, of course. With all the
effort Tania put into swimming, her academic results suffered a lot. Parents
are always concerned about their child’s education, and Tania’s weren’t any
different. When she did badly for her trial exams, her parents “threatened”
to stop sending her for training.
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As a result, Tania spent more time studying and improved immensely.
Now, Tania’s parents are very supportive of what she does and are
extremely proud of her. Her parents are not only her support system, but
also her finance managers, cooks, chauffeurs, housekeepers, and, of course,
her masseur and masseuse when she is having muscle aches.
Another reason why Tania is my hero is the self-discipline, the
determination and the will power she possesses. Everyday she wakes up
before dawn and goes for a three-hour training session, swimming a few
hundred laps. After that, she rushes off to school, then has another training
session and finally goes home. Time management is very important in her
life. If I had to do that I would all but fail.
Tania feels that everyone should have a goal in life. Hers is swimming.
Even after all her obstacles, she still claims that swimming is her passion and
will always be. This is because she says that swimming has helped her
become a better person. It has mainly taught her to think positively and face
up to every challenge in life. Besides swimming for competitions, Tania was
also in a few advertisements, one of which was for Milo!
Sometimes when she goes for training, her coach will pressure her and
at times cane her when she does not meet his expectations. It’s in these
tough moments that she makes herself work harder, pushing herself beyond
the limit and reaching new levels. Tania, beyond the shadow of a doubt,
deserves all admiration.
Tania has also achieved A’s in all her exam results. Combined with her
swimming abilities, she was able to get a scholarship to a good private
school, Sekolah Sri Cempaka in Cheras, saving her parents a large sum of
money.
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Tania is an all-rounder. She is very active in school and is always trying
out new things. Apart from swimming, Tania also plays other sports such as
water polo, handball, volleyball and table tennis. Being elected head prefect
this year has also help to improve her public speaking abilities and
leadership qualities.
She takes time to organise campaigns and carnivals for her school to
ensure they are a success. One of the campaigns which she organised was
an anti-verbal abuse campaign, with the tagline “Say It Right.” She does all
her tasks with an enthusiastic attitude and completes them flawlessly.
Even now as Tania waits to sit for her SPM exams, she continues to
work hard and do her best. She maintains an optimistic attitude towards life
which inspires me to do the same. You could say that she has been a big
influence in my life.
Tania lives a very satisfactory life that she says she will never trade or
change for anything, despite what she has had to go through. She wins
medals, is head prefect, and has great results, the best of friends and, most
of all, a fantastic, understanding and very supportive family.
Tania Lee is the lead role model in my life. Seeing her go through the
challenges she’s been through shows me that I can do well too. I may not be
able to be a state swimmer like her, but she motivates me to do better. I
hope that someday I may be able to make a difference in somebody else’s
life like she has in mine. To be a hero to someone, like what she has been to
me, My Unsung Hero.
(Back to the top)
5
Terima kasih, DoktorBy CHONG JUN AI
Photo of Dr. Foo Chee Hoe
Chee Hoe almost yawned as he made the final stitch on the vaginal
wound, then looked up and smiled to his patient, a 38-year-old Malay lady
who had just given birth to her sixth child.
“Sudah siap! Boleh letak balik kaki dan rehatlah. Nanti kita bawa baby
mari, OK?” (“It’s done! You can put your feet down and relax. We’ll bring the
baby to you soon, OK?”)
“Terima kasih doktor, berapa jahit?” (“Thanks doctor, how many stitches
are there?“)
“Banyak! Jangan risau, rehatlah, ya.” (“Lots! Don’t worry, just rest.”)
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He yawned again. It was 3:15 a.m. on a Sunday morning. He was in
desperate need for sleep, but just as he had washed his hands, another lady,
gravidly pregnant, was wheeled into the labour room on a stretcher.
“Kes apa?” (“What kind of case is it?”)
“Gravida three, para two. Patient fitted half an hour ago, in Hospital Kuala
Kangsar. We started on ‘mag-sulf’ in Kuala Kangsar,” said the nurse who
brought her in.
Chee Hoe forgot about his need for sleep, and rushed to put on his gloves.
The new patient appeared to be disoriented.
“Staff nurse, please call my boss. She needs caesarean.” Just when he
tried to check her pupils, another nurse called out, “Dr. Foo, patient oozing!”
Chee Hoe reluctantly left his ill patient and rushed to Bay 3 where the
patient’s episiotomy wound that he had just stitched up seemed to be
bleeding again. Just as he changed his pair of gloves, the phone rang. He
hoped it was not for him and proceeded to examine the wound. There was
another tear. He would have to suture some more.
“Doktor, kena jahit lagi ke?” (“Doctor, do I have to get more stitches?”)
“Sorry kak, ada lagi… sebab…” (“Sorry, ma’am, you need to get more…
because…”) before he could finish, someone yelled from the phone table,
“Doktor, Wad C panggil. Staff nurse nak inform ada seorang ‘baby’ nampak
biru lepas minum susu.” (“Doctor, Wad C called. The staff nurse says there’s
a baby looking blue after drinking milk.”)
Chee Hoe wanted to take a deep breath but only managed a short one as
he quickly thought about which case he should attend to first - the one with
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eclampsia who needed an emergency caesarean, the one bleeding, or the
baby in Ward C about 100 metres away.
He wanted to yell “Crazy night!” but whispered it instead. “Kak Ros,
patient bed 1 prepare for Caesar. Panggil Dr. Malik please. I will inform Paeds
later. Kak Letch, please do the stitching. I gotta go see the baby.”
He walked quickly to Ward C. He almost ran but his legs were wobbly by
now. He was tired, and searched the back of his mind for the reason he
chose this job. He was too stressed and exhausted by now to remember the
reason he became a doctor.
Such a scenario has become a norm in Dr. Foo Chee Hoe’s working life. It
has been almost a year for him as a young doctor in government service.
Had he made a wrong career decision? Is this all worth it?
Life was different six years ago. Two days after he had received a letter
confirming his place in a public medical school, Singapore offered him a
scholarship to study pharmacy. He thought carefully for hours and then
faxed a reject letter to the Singapore High Commission.
I will regret it if I forgo the opportunity to be a doctor – he had thought to
himself then.
Chee Hoe – a jovial, good-natured, filial, and caring guy as described by
one of his close friends, Ennie Yong – came from a modest family. He was not
very well off, just slightly poorer than the middle class. His dad was
unemployed at 40 years old due to a rare genetic disease that caused his
hearing and eyesight to gradually deteriorate with age. His mother became
the breadwinner of the family. He used to live in a house of nine inhabitants
and was forced to share a room with his grandmother. He had to bear with a
lot of family politics while he was still young; with rampant quarrels, verbal
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abuse and gossiping while living in the old house. It was not the most
cheerful childhood, but he learnt a lot, grew up faster and his experience
made him a more determined person.
Being a doctor was not a childhood dream for Chee Hoe, but it was
definitely not a choice of convenience either. It was relatively an easy choice
as he was an idealistic person back then as a high school student. Making
profits and getting rich was not his target; he wanted a noble job. Also, he
met many others in his Form 6 class who were also pursuing medicine. They
inspired him to strive on.
“It was good to have a batch of people thinking of medicine, and working
towards it together,” Chee Hoe said.
Chee Hoe has had to compromise time and attention to spend with his
parents, sister, girlfriend and other family members. Any other job would
have allowed him to bring his father for doctor appointments, to have
frequent family dinners and to be there for his sister as she searched for a
college. His personal safety is at risk every time he gets onto an ambulance
to bring a patient to a referral hospital, every time he takes blood from or
sets up intravenous lines to HIV or Hepatitis B/C patients. He also eats at
irregular hours, sometimes even to the extent of skipping meals; has no time
for exercise and very few sleeping hours.
However, Chee Hoe says there are more perks to his job than setbacks.
Although he may have failed about one percent of his patients, he has done
some good for the other 99 percent. Also, what really encourages him is
when his patients are really appreciative of what he has done and his
service; their respect and their gratitude are genuine. Working with his
nurses also gives him joy in the area of leadership, management, and
personal relations.
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Though some passion may be gone, diluted by being overworked and
having to sacrifice many things in fulfilling his job, he still loves his job very
much. Together with him, there are other doctors who share the same story,
the same struggle, doubts and personal triumphs in their career. Dr. Foo
Chee Hoe is definitely a hero amongst heroes.
(Back to the top)
10
A hundred timesBy CHONG YONG WEI
Bing Xuan (first from right, sitting) with her classmates
Bing Xuan is an avid fan of Taiwanese pop group S.H.E. and Malaysia’s
very own “Prince of Pop” Nicholas Teo. She reads anything and everything,
from encyclopedias to her favourite, mystery stories. She has long harboured
a burning ambition to be a teacher one day. Like many fifteen-year old girls,
she also keeps a neatly decorated autograph book, in which her classmates
jot down personal profiles, scribble colourful messages and poems, as well as
paste cute little stickers.
I came to know Bing Xuan as a girl who studies in my former secondary
school, SMJK Ave Maria Convent in Ipoh. In the small, close-knit community
of Ipoh, she was known to be a very bright child. By the age of three or four,
she had already shown her intellectual potential. While other toddlers were
still mesmerised by an assortment of toys, she would observe the world
around her with an insatiable curiosity as well as pick up books and try to
read them unaided. Amazingly, she would pick up words immediately and
recite them aloud.
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However, intellectual ability is far from what makes this child so
special. Beneath her humble demeanour, frail body and spasmodic limbs lay
an undying courage and indomitable grittiness that are both remarkable and
inspiring.
Bing Xuan’s life took a sharp turn the day she was struck by a
mysterious high fever at the age of 10. Initially dismissed as having a normal
fever, she was not given proper treatment until the symptoms showed no
signs of subsiding 10 days later, and she was admitted to the emergency
ward. By then she had started losing her ability to speak, her limbs began to
contort, and the muscles all over her body had contracted. There was never
an official medical explanation for her condition. When Bing Xuan finally
came to terms that she could no longer walk and move like a normal child
nor express herself in words, she broke down in tears.
After that, determined to continue schooling and live an independent
life like anybody else, Bing Xuan relearned everything from washing her
hands to wearing her shoes, like a newborn infant. She would take half an
hour just to buckle up three buttons on her shirt before she went to school.
Initially, her mother fed her liquid food, sometimes taking up to four hours
just to feed her a bowl of soup because the soup kept flowing freely out from
her mouth. Later, Bing Xuan learned to eat rice unaided. However, more
than 90 percent of the rice would spill all over the floor as her arms kept
flinging the spoon involuntarily!
In school, Bing Xuan’s determination to seize every opportunity to
learn is legendary. When she first contacted her illness, she could not control
her hand muscles and thus, could not write. Every time she attempted to do
so, her legs would stiffen involuntarily, her neck would tilt down, her arm
muscles would contract and all the veins would protrude as if she was pulling
a 10-ton Hummer truck. Initially, she could not even write an A3 paper-sized
“A.” However, after years and years of practising writing everyday, she is
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now able to write slowly but as neatly as anybody else. As she is only able to
write on a slanting plane, she can only write against the edges of tables,
shifting the paper up whenever she completes a line. Despite all these
difficulties, she never fails to hand up her homework on time. Occasionally,
when she is unable to complete her homework by midnight, her loving
parents, 12-year-old sister and 11-year-old brother would help contribute a
sentence here and there, resulting in a piece of homework that is concocted
of the entire family’s handwriting!
She also reads the newspapers every morning, using her elbows to
turn the pages, sometimes until her elbows are skinned and bleeding. And
even though she cannot communicate with the teacher, she is a keen
observer and extremely fast learner, with a natural talent for writing
articulate, flowing Malay essays.
Her mother recounts a poignant incident when, after countless speech
therapy sessions, Bing Xuan finally developed the ability to mumble a few
words. One day, when Bing Xuan’s mother informed her that one of her
classmates had just called up the family, she was so eager to surprise her
classmate with a “hello!” that she wanted to answer the telephone too.
Nervous and excited, she struggled to make her way to the telephone.
However, by the time she reached her destination, her classmate had
already hung up.
The school allows Bing Xuan slightly extended time and usage of the
laptop during examinations. Other than that, she goes through the same
rigorous tests as everyone else. According to her friends, she never leaves a
question unanswered or an extra minute unutilised. She would struggle to
draw triangles for trigonometry questions, even though she can hardly hold
the ruler properly.
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As the monthly examinations are cramped into a tiring two days, she
would leave her entire wheelchair soaked with sweat by the end of the first
day’s examinations. Then, she would go home and sleep, perhaps due to
exhaustion, without changing her position even once until the next
afternoon, just in time for the second day’s examinations.
For the UPSR examinations, she was only allowed an extended time of
half an hour per paper. She became the toast of the community when she
scored an astonishing 6As and 1B, with the only B for her Chinese paper as
she could not finish writing the notoriously difficult Chinese characters in
time.
For the sake of convenience, Bing Xuan is allowed to rest alone in the
classroom whenever everyone else goes for recess or to the art room,
computer room and science laboratories. Once, when her art teacher forgot
to remind her that she was not required to go to the art room, she seized the
chance to create an excuse to go there. After an entire hour, she amazingly
managed to limp all the way from her classroom on the ground floor to the
art room located on the second floor, two blocks away! By the time she
arrived at the base of the stairs that led to the art room, she was already out
of breath and her face had paled. Her classmates, panic-stricken but
determined to realise her wish to see the art room at the same time, lifted
her slowly up the stairs. Eventually, Bing Xuan succeeded in reaching the art
room and greeting her shocked art teacher just before the bell rang.
Bing Xuan’s father, an engineer who often works outstation, is the only
breadwinner in a family of six which includes Bing Xuan’s ailing grandfather.
Since the start of Bing Xuan’s illness, the family has spent over RM100,000
on her numerous operations, physiotherapy sessions and various treatments,
using up almost their entire lives’ savings. In spite of that, they have never
requested financial aid from any charitable organisation. According to Bing
Xuan’s mother, they would not do so as long as they are still able to feed
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themselves, and besides, there are many more terminally ill patients in
Malaysia, some of whose families cannot even afford regular meals.
Deep within Bing Xuan’s pain-ravaged and scar-ridden body is a young
heart that is a hundred times stronger than iron. Her legs, contorted and
stung by spasms, have tread on a hundred different paths of agony, joy,
sorrow and love. For Bing Xuan, just as the challenge of the everyday tasks
which we so often take for granted is multiplied by a hundred times, so too,
is the sensation of every waking minute and the triumph of overcoming
every obstacle. Hence, she has lived life a hundred times more than most of
us.
And that is why, to me, all the Tan Bing Xuans in the world are heroes.
(Back to the top)
15
He loves MalaysiaBy CHOW YEE HOONG
Photo of Yeoh Chen Chow
“The most important thing in college is to learn how to learn. The
present illiterates are those who cannot read and write but the future
illiterates will most likely be those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.”
He started talking, and then mentioned the first sentence of his
favorite quote as above; the sentence still lingers in my mind today.
This moment introduced me to this unsung hero who has significantly
changed the lives of many, not to mention that of mine, with his sincerity,
kindness, truthfulness, and passion.
I was completely impressed by how motivated and passionate he has
been in promoting the best of others, and in his unflagging efforts to make
this country a better place to live in. Once I thought phrases like
“contribution to our country” and “nationalism” that he frequently
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mentioned were like those commonly seen in publications; those a lot of
people slowly find to be mere clichés. But it really did not take me long to be
completely touched and influenced by his sincere actions, as he lives up to
what he says about our wonderful country.
Referred to by his housemate as “the genius of multitasking” and well
known to virtually everyone in our former preparatory college as “the
passionate senior who is always concerned about his juniors and helps them
in any way he can,” he has been the organiser of tens, if not hundreds, of
talks, events and get-togethers, all aimed at sharing the best with the
communities around him. He started talking onstage in my former residential
hall at least twice a year, to help new students and graduating seniors
transition from the typical Malaysian education system to the otherwise
outlandish American education system.
Usually staying after the talks to answer any in-depth questions, it has
not been unusual for him to stay throughout the night just to answer our
questions. His great helping hand in college applications – including
reviewing an average of 30 application essays a day – actually helped a lot of
students get admitted to top-notch schools.
I still remember his words: “I might not have gotten admission to
Harvard/MIT etc., but I have certainly received thank-you notes from those
who have.” He has constantly sacrificed his sleep, time and health to help us
– without expecting nor receiving anything in return; many of us, on the
other hand, because of his passion and sacrifice, really got what we wanted –
the path to a better tertiary education leading to a better life!
A co-founder of ReCom.org, a leader of Discover U.S. Education – KL
’07, an active participant in charities such as World Vision, Mercy Malaysia,
Cybercare, YMCA, and the assistant secretary of the Malaysia Mensa Society,
he has spent the first 26 years of his life promoting the virtues of great
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initiatives, ideas and organisations to everyone he knows. He wants others to
succeed, and “will smile inside when someday, someone whom you helped
tells you, ‘because of what you told me and helped me with, I succeeded in
my life.’”
Yet he was just like another ordinary boy sitting right next to you in
class. He was a reserved student, who then struggled through the tough
transition from a Mandarin-speaking community to an English-speaking
environment. He, who today inspires others with his English speeches, was
one of the only eight in his freshmen class to undergo a remedial English
course upon enrolment at college (His freshman class size was 3,000
students). But he strove very hard. From his participation in Kadet Remaja
Sekolah, he learnt to be more outgoing and soon developed his leadership
qualities. With encouragement from his classmates and also by watching
English movies, he eventually overcame his problem with the English
language. With a scholarship from our Public Service Department, he then
graduated from an Ivy League school in 2005.
But what makes him, again, remarkably different from any other
student who works equally hard and is passionate about voluntary work is
essentially his confidence in and compassion toward our country.
“I would not be who I am today without my country. My parents would
still not be able to afford even a year of my tuition after working for their
entire life,” he says. How often could you hear such appreciation toward our
country voiced by such a high achiever, when questioned about his devotion
to Malaysia?
He absolutely believes in the great potential that this country holds,
and that the different levels of societal contribution can eventually
significantly improve any political and socio-economic issues. He has always
been optimistic and without hesitation chose the constructive approach
18
toward any comments about our nation. At this point, I cannot help but quote
him for his true words, “I would want to see a united Malaysia, where all of
us would not need to look at our differences, be it race, religion or gender,
and focus to make Malaysia a better place.”
Now I have truly understood the drive behind all his efforts to help
others without expecting anything in return.
Now I can fathom his sacrifice in promoting virtues to others neglecting
even his own health – there is not a moment to lose to feed the need of
talents and knowledge of the ever-growing child Malaysia!
Now, I deduce the reason I remembered his quotes and sayings so
well: not because of what he has achieved, but of what he envisions, and the
determination in him that altogether influence the communities around him –
to build a great Malaysia.
Yet he is not yet lauded for his vision, his efforts in achieving that
vision, nor his sacrifices; sometimes people even doubt his intentions and
sincerity. The least I can now do is to dedicate these 1,000 words to this
unsung hero who absolutely deserves it. To this special someone who has
significantly influenced his immediate communities. I dedicate this
composition to Yeoh Chen Chow, a former SMJK Jit Sin student and Cornell
alumni who has been making a difference in our home Malaysia.
(Back to the top)
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The happy childBy CLEMENT CHAN ZHI LI
Photo of Brandon Chan
Every day at 7:57 p.m., he sits in front of our slightly dysfunctional box he
learned to recognise as the television, his primary source of entertainment:
moving squiggling animations that project themselves 24 hours a day on
Cartoon Network, and prancing Chinese girls that belt out Chinese New Year
hits from countless VCDs we have bought.
Everyday at 7:57 p.m., he waits for the national songs to play on TV3 –
because music seems to flow through his veins – and he would sit right in
front of the telly, his knees up to his chin, and like a thoughtful, mature
musician, he would drink the melodies of Keranamu Malaysia and Negaraku,
soulfully and powerfully sung by songstress Siti Nurhaliza. He would be so
inebriated with the music that nothing short of a tempting toy car or two
would move him from his seat.
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His name is Brandon Chan – a name he has learned to understand and
recognise that it belongs to him and it’s solely his.
Turning 12 two months ago brought him to the National Registry
Department where he proudly showed off to everyone who was willing to pay
him attention his brand new MyKad, albeit a photocopied one. His face on
the identity card was unsmiling – no one ever looks good on identity cards or
driving licences – but the owner of the card was grinning from ear-to-ear as
he showed his red Superman wallet to me, conveying his pride that he has
now a MyKad in his wallet like the rest of the family.
My younger brother has Down Syndrome, a condition which we explained
to him made him simply special, although my parents weren’t exactly sure if
he fully comprehended that statement. An extra chromosome doesn’t
detract from his right to live like any other human being.
The darkest moment that shrouded my family in a veil of physical agony
and mental torment was when my mum was diagnosed with nose cancer
four years ago, where she had to endure countless of chemotherapy sessions
on the pretext that it would make her better again. But what truly made her
feel better at the end of the day wasn’t the countless of artificial products
that entered her body, but the simple warmth and ever-enduring charm
Brandon displayed which my mom needed the most.
Sitting beside her bed while my mom recuperated after a session in the
hospital, he would stroke her decaying hair and embed small little kisses on
her cheek, something that neither of us taught him to do. He mightn’t know
how to speak coherently, but his eternal smiles, endless kisses, and
boundless love with little gestures more than made up for it. My mom
believes that if it wasn’t for his indirect, constant moral support, among
others, she would’ve given up trying to endure the excruciating
chemotherapy days.
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That dark age has now passed and is nothing more but a remnant of a
tumultuous blot on our history pages. My brother remains the same as ever,
ever generous with his smiles and occasionally crying, but still the radiance
of his beaming grins never fails to lighten our bad days.
How is it possible that a single person can feel so happy every single day,
to a child-like extent? It’s as if his extra copy of the 21st chromosome
embodies this very aspect, trapping the eternal youth that many yearn for;
but truly, one could learn to see that innocence still exists amidst a world rife
with depravation, if they looked at him.
Brandon still can’t and refuses to eat solid food like chicken or beef; he
still continues to assume that everyday is Chinese New Year and dances and
sings the holiday’s songs dizzyingly daily; he still harbours his tiny, naive
wish to take Nur Sannah, his classmate, as his wife; he still is shy with
strangers; and he still has that nagging hole in his heart.
He still is ignorant to the evils that plague the world daily, but it’s
extremely heartening for me to know that one of the few sources of pure
innocence lies inside my brother. He makes friends with almost everybody
possible, like the abang and adik of next door, without knowing the meaning
of race or religion. Hence, he knows not of racism or prejudice.
He’s an unsung, atypical, Malaysian hero to my family, and if you simply
need a single, undiscriminating, and unjudging smile dished out generously,
well, say hello to my brother. I’m sure he has one in store for you.
(Back to the top)
22
Her father’s voiceBy DEBBIE WONG
Photo of Sarah Lasung
“My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in
weakness.”
(2 Corinthians 12:9, the Bible, New International Version)
We live in a world addicted to fame, a world that tells us that our worth
is measured by our bank balance, social status and waistline, a world where
survival of the fittest is no longer just an adage, but a justification to get
ahead regardless of casualties. Ironically, the people who touch our hearts
and who become legends in their own right, reminding us by example that
there are far greater things in which to invest time than the proverbial rat
race, remain hidden, often unnoticed and rarely championed even as they
champion others on. They are our unsung heroes.
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A scene plays over and over again in my head; Uncle Ballang is
apologetic that he cannot bend over to affix a plaster on his toe and Sarah
comes to help him. As she kneels down and gently wraps the plaster over
the wound, the image freezes in time and has stayed with me until today.
That one unassuming act is just a cog in the machinery that is the dedication
and love Sarah has sacrificially shown her father and will continue to show
him for the rest of his life.
Today I pay tribute to Sarah Lasung. Funny, empathetic and fearless in
all things tennis, for almost 20 years, she has been my Kuching born-and-
bred, Lun Bawang-Chinese, Sarawak laksa-loving friend. Four years ago,
Sarah’s father was diagnosed with Multiple System Atrophy (MSA), generally
known as brain degeneration, which not only robs one of motion and speech,
but also nullifies will, independence and liberty. To accommodate her
bedridden father, life had to be reorganised because someone had to be
available at home all the time, be it Sarah, her mother or brother.
One of the things we pride ourselves on in Malaysia is filial piety.
However, it does not take more than tuning in to the occasional radio show
to realise that whilst we assert that we provide for our elders, more and
more people today calculate against their parents instead of for them,
backed by excuses such as the lifestyle they do not wish to compromise. The
bond of true filial piety should be taken as seriously as marriage; for better
or worse, for richer or poorer, in sickness and in health. Not only does Sarah
tend to her father, changing and cleaning him as a nurse would her charge,
she also actively contributes to the household expenses and assumed, at
age 21, the loan of the house they now stay in, after her father lost
wardenship where he worked and subsequently the family home because of
his debilitating illness.
Even though it was and in some ways still is a challenge physically,
mentally and emotionally, Sarah has never seen her father as a “problem” to
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be fixed or a burden to be borne. In her own words, “Not because I have to
but because I want to.” Of course there are times when unanswered
questions such as “Will daddy ever get well?” hurt deeply and uncertainty
threatens to overwhelm but she rises to the challenge, little by little, a day at
a time. She continues to be her bubbly, cheery self and as clichéd as it
sounds, life does go on. Her favourite food is still Sarawak laksa and she still
wants to visit Disneyland.
Difficulties have not deterred Sarah from pursuing her dream and
ambition of becoming a teacher, not for the sake of teaching itself, but to
serve her community and society, by becoming a role model for the next
generation. Currently at Universiti Utara Malaysia (UUM) pursuing a
postgraduate diploma of education, she was worried about leaving her father
but he encouraged her to go and that helped her make her decision.
On top of her dedication to her father, Sarah also plays an important
role in the youth group of the Kuching Evangelical Church (KEC). Maclean,
the youth deacon notes, “Although her responsibility to her father is still very
much at the forefront of her mind, Sarah manages to find time to motivate
the youth group in church.”
Her passion for Jesus is infectious and in her desire to pass that on, she
has proven a wise advisor and trustworthy confidante. She co-leads the
church choir with her friend Sharon and last year, through patience, diligence
and good humour, they developed a group of amateurs for a stellar
Christmas performance of the Hallelujah Chorus from Handel’s Messiah.
Sharon adds, “She also has a gift for reaching out to people, making
newcomers feel welcome and has a deep concern for the spiritual wellbeing
of her friends.” On top of her academic and personal commitments, she also
juggled free piano lessons of her own initiative, to train more pianists for
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church. The youngsters really enjoyed it and were disappointed when the
lessons had to be stopped when she left for UUM.
Maclean further offers, “Sarah is phenomenal. In spite of everything,
she makes the best out of a situation. She is very protective of her family
and lives without regret.” When asked to describe her in a word, he simply
says, “Tenacious.”
Sarah is a success story, not because hers is a rags-to-riches tale. On
the contrary, the adversity she faces is something she has to live with
instead of being able to work out of it, and she faces the dilemma day after
day and must live vivaciously in spite of it. She is just one of many who go
through life, impacting those around them, sending butterfly effects of
enormous magnitude to shape the world. But she is my unsung hero because
through her life, through challenges so close to her heart, she gives human
dignity a voice, showing that human life is worth much more than what we
can do or give. It is intrinsically precious and so to every extent possible
must be given its proper value, no matter the sacrifice and no matter the
cost.
(Back to the top)
26
‘I’ is saya, and ‘name’ is nama
By EVELYN WONG
Photo of Elaine Leong
Natai means “death” in the Dusun language.
When Elaine Leong, 18, travelled to Kampung Natai – literally, the village
of death – in April 2007 to do volunteer work with a Kadazan-Dusun tribe, she
must have wondered if she had gotten into more than she bargained for.
Thankfully, Kampung Natai is nothing like its name. A Kadazan-Dusun
village situated north of Kota Kinabalu, it can only be reached by four-wheel
drive. There, Elaine planned to carry out her two-week project with another
volunteer, Xiao Wei, working in the village teaching children English and
helping in village activities such as gotong-royong (spring cleaning). A lot of
hard work and preparation had brought her there, but the best was yet to
come.
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Like most urban teenagers, Elaine, formerly of Catholic High School PJ,
had so much more on her mind after SPM to consider besides volunteering.
“Although I did long for the chance to be involved in volunteer work, I
didn’t think I had the time or resources to do so,” she says.
So when the opportunity came up with an offer from a charitable
organisation, she jumped at it.
“Better to regret going than not going,” was her thinking, she said.
Determined, Elaine threw herself into the daunting but inevitable task of
raising funds for her project. Armed with a list of corporations, she
painstakingly created acrylic paintings with the message “Thank you for
putting smiles on faces” to send with her letter of appeal to more than a
hundred companies. Sadly, rejections seemed to be the norm rather than the
exception.
“It was pretty discouraging at times,” Elaine admits. “Some companies
gave me false hopes when they showed interest but then did not reply again.
Once I even received a very rude phone call…”
Nevertheless, Elaine persevered and was rewarded. Two employees from
HSBC Bank and IDC respectively were touched enough to make personal
donations for Elaine’s cause. AirAsia also supported her by providing funds
as well as a free plane ticket to Sabah.
In Kampung Natai, Elaine and Xiao Wei taught English to local children
and adults. Here, Elaine’s creativity came to the fore once again.
“Elaine loved cracking jokes during the adult class … she was very
creative in teaching the children. She thought of all sorts of different
activities to make the classes interesting,” Xiao Wei recalls.
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They divided the children into different groups: “The older ones would
learn sentence structure and grammar. Those just entering primary would
learn basic words; those yet to enter school would learn the ABCs or just
draw. For the younger ones, they would draw something and I would tell
them the English word for it,” Elaine explains.
They had fun with the children, buying eggs for them to paint at Easter. “I
think they most enjoyed eating the hard-boiled eggs afterwards, though! It’s
a rare treat for them.”
One of the eye-openers of the project was getting involved in the village’s
Open Day. Elaine and Xiao Wei planned events, did publicity via signboards
and flyers, manned counters and helped raise funds, but mostly they soaked
in the sights and sounds of the novel experience.
Like any proper celebration, there was food (the men slaughtered
chickens and caught fish while the women cooked the spoils), music
(traditional gong-playing), and games (blow-pipe, spear-throwing, a race on
bamboo stilts, slingshot and many more). Elaine had the opportunity to
interact with the villagers as well as witness firsthand a “foreign,” yet local
way of life. Staying with a villager’s family showed Elaine what life was like in
a ethnic tribal village far from town: bare of the material possessions most
urban folk deem necessary to survival, yet plentiful in natural resources and
beauty.
Reflecting on this, Elaine believes “there’s this huge gap between the
ethnic tribes in East Malaysia compared to West Malaysia. When I came
back, I had to tell all my friends about my trip, what I learned about their
culture and way of life. That’s the reason I set up a web page and a movie
29
documenting my experiences. Through these, they could really feel like they
were in the village, like I was bringing the village to them.”
“I guess to many of my friends now, Kadazan-Dusun doesn’t seem like
such a foreign culture anymore,” she laughs. “It’s ironic that in a
multicultural nation like Malaysia, we still don’t know each other very well.
It’s one way to connect, albeit a small one.”
Her friend Jeanette Chang agrees. “After the project, I think the most
significant change that I’ve seen in Elaine would be her outlook on
friendship, that it is possible to form eternal friendships with people of
different worlds,” she says. “Even though she and the people there were
separated by differences of culture, language and lifestyle, it was possible for
her to forge friendships and bond with them.”
For most people, that would have been the end of it. However, Elaine
became committed to this cause and decided to visit the village for another
two weeks again in June 2007 –self-funded, self-organised and on her own.
After the familiar procedure of contacting sponsors, securing a ticket, and
convincing two very worried parents that their precious daughter would be
perfectly safe by herself, she set off again for Sabah.
When asked about the work she has done among the villagers of
Kampung Natai, Elaine is realistic.
“My project is actually a very miniscule one. But I also feel that whatever
you do, no matter how small, has an effect. So maybe I didn’t teach the kids
Shakespeare, but at least they now know how to introduce themselves, say
simple words in English,” she says. “My only regret is that I could not teach
them more in such a short while.
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“In the newspapers, I had always read about the low standard of English
in rural areas, but I had not imagined it to be this serious. A fair number of
the younger children are illiterate, and rely mainly on memorising simple
English phrases without actually understand what it means,” she continues.
“I would love to give each of them individual attention and to explain that ‘I’
is saya and ‘name’ is nama. I would love to teach some of the older kids to
read Roald Dahl, to open them up to a world of imagination and wonder -
perhaps I will do so should I ever go back again.”
Regarding what still needs to be done about to improve the quality of life
among the tribal people of East Malaysia, she says, “They need better roads,
but more important, dedicated and knowledgeable teachers. I found out that
the adults in the village drink a lot of lihing (homemade rice wine); some
seem quite alcoholic and it saddens me that their children will have to grow
up in that vicious cycle. However, I can’t just burn all that alcohol on whim,
can I? So things are not so simple. Hopefully, some of these children will be
able to break free of it. One important means to that end is education.”
You may say that it’s just a novel way to spend one’s holidays before
jetsetting abroad. Or you can look at it as a sign that, as a generation, young
people are becoming increasingly socially aware and looking for
opportunities to make a difference in our community, our world.
Elaine made a remarkable journey beginning with just a seed of
determination, lots of printer ink, paper and crayons. I think we’d all agree
that she has surpassed her goal of doing charity work “beyond posing in
pictures for Moral projects,” and in doing so, realised that when you give to
others, you gain much, much more yourself.
(Back to the top)
31
As bright as the straight-A scorers
By KHAIDATUL NISA MOHAMED ZABIDI
Photo of Khairun Nisa Mohamed Zabidi
It is much too often a sad fact that those who have worked hard to make
a difference fade away in the sea of humanity, their deeds never to be heard
of again.
In Boleh-land especially, more often than not people give up because the
odds are sometimes insurmountable. Individuals fighting for change find out
they are fighting against a mentality set that change is bad, and against a
lack of understanding that poses a challenge towards reform.
It is even more unfortunate about the Malaysian mentality that grades
seem to dictate the measure of an individual’s success. The list of straight-A
scorers for the SPM seems to get longer and longer every year. The
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unfortunate students who do not score as well as they hoped are seen as
unequal, and their futures are thought to be not as bright as the straight-A
scorers.
It’s even more unfortunate when your own family thinks the same way,
and it’s often a double-whammy when an individual, instead of pursuing one
of the more traditional courses such as medicine or engineering, chooses a
more general idea such as mass communications.
Let me tell you a story about one of these individuals. May this story have
a happier ending than those had by many faceless hopefuls.
My sister chose to pursue her diploma in mass communications. She was
not one of the many straight-A students of the SPM. That said, mass
communications was her first choice, a choice she would’ve have made no
matter what grades she had obtained. Her choice was possibly a blessing in
disguise, because she found her passion in communications. She felt that
she could reach out to more people through that platform.
Passion for your subject, for your work, often translates into grades, and
my sister made the Dean’s List every single semester. An achievement
lauded by most, but in Boleh-land, the unbelievers are loud and proud, and
the accolades are quiet, or almost unheard.
“It’s only UiTM.”
“Of course you should get into the Dean’s List, it’s only mass
communications. It’s not difficult.”
I could see the light dim in her eyes a little bit, since she was basically
being told she wasn’t as smart as everyone else. But I could see resolve in
her eyes as well.
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It was the same resolve she had when she decided to join the debate
team. I still remember the day when she turned to me and asked me what
AFTA (the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement) was. She was 17, I was 19 and I
couldn’t believe my own sister didn’t know about one of the most hotly
discussed topics at the time.
A lot of people would have shrugged and done nothing about their
ignorance. She chose to confront it.
As a challenge, she decided to try her hand at the debate team. Like too
many Malaysians, she was uninterested in topics outside school. She swiftly
discovered she knew next to nothing about topics such as politics,
geography and current affairs. Some would say she crashed and burned at
debate.
She didn’t give up, far from it.
Today, she has travelled to international destinations while representing
her university in debate. She admits to being far from the best, but her
achievements speak for themselves.
She was on the semi-finalist team at the Australasian and Asian Debating
Championships in Wellington and Korea respectively. Individually, she has
won the titles of champion and best speaker at the Women’s Debating
Championship, an achievement she holds dear to her heart. Not bad for the
20-year old girl who didn’t know what AFTA was.
Two things she has always spoken out for are her anti-smoking stance
and her environmentalist message. They are two topics which are not always
popular among youth, but she has always remained outspoken about them.
It wasn’t just all talk though, and actions speak louder than words.
34
At first she would merely talk of things close to her heart, and of wanting
to make a difference.
But it was her actions that made the difference.
Talk turned into action, starting small on the local circuit when she
organised a fundraiser in the form of a futsal tournament to raise funds for
the youth empowerment movement.
Talk turned into action and she, together with the UiTM debate team,
participated in Live Earth as they hosted a beach party at Sunway Lagoon to
collect pledges for awareness of global warming and environmental issues.
Talk turned to action and it was for her actions that she was elected a
finalist in the Bayer Young Environmentalist Envoy awards, for her work with
the YAWA (Yarisan Anak Warisan Alam), and her work in Kuala Gula with a
project to develop educational and infrastructural facilities to encourage eco-
tourism among locals, under Raleigh International Kuala Lumpur.
Talk turned to action when she represented Malaysia in the Global Youth
Meet on Health conference in New Delhi, India as part of the Youth4Health
network, and later on, as one of the only two youths at the Malaysian Council
for Tobacco Control, to gain perspective into the legalities involved.
All within three years.
She walks among them, just another individual in the sea of faces. Just
another individual, they say, but she isn’t. Her quests for justice are quiet,
unrelenting. She does not ask for glory, or for her people to call her name, or
to be their heroine.
But she is mine.
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(Back to the top)
36
Saving the environment one reef at a time
By KOK SHIAU LEE
Photo of (Left to right) Shiau Lee, Yoke Lee
A few years back, I was just an ordinary and plain girl who only knew
the way from home to school, from school to home, and from home to
daddy’s shop… Until I wrote my first essay regarding youths’ role in
combating AIDS, and then attended a seminar on HIV and AIDS. That was the
first time I met her.
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She had a sisterly, cheerful composure, which attracted much
attention towards her ideas and somewhat set her apart from the other
youth in this seminar. I felt like a dwarf when I stood in front of her. Now, I do
not feel like a dwarf anymore, not because she isn’t the giant I knew a few
years ago, but because today she is my friend.
My favourite mentor is a daring and happy-go-lucky girl who does not
mind pursuing her dream – conserving marine resources – in alien
environments. Yoke Lee is a marine biologist, but her job descriptions do not
sound as grand as its name: she dives and researches ocean creatures.
Some people think that this job is just a waste of money. However, her
profession will hopefully allow our children to see Leatherback turtles
swimming joyfully along the South China Sea, among others.
My friend is also the editor of Mameng News, a publication that is
available in both electronic and print versions. This newsletter has the latest
information on marine conservation and the work of WWF Malaysia. In its
newest edition, the magazine disseminates the latest news regarding the
proposed Tun Mustapha Park in Kudat-Banggi, the soon-to-be largest marine
protected area in Malaysia. This park will allow fish to spawn and will provide
valuable virgin sites for scientific research, to be conducted by various
organisations such as Greenforce and Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS). Tun
Mustapha Park will also incorporate local participation, encouraging
communities to contribute their experience and knowledge to the
development of the park.
Besides that, Yoke Lee is the co-ordinator of the Banggi Environmental
Awareness Centre (BEAC), in Karakit, Banggi, which is also the workplace for
the WWF Banggi Youth Club. She exposes the youth community of Banggi to
various issues of marine preservation and also teaches conversational
English classes for anglers at Maliangin and Karakit. In addition to that, Yoke
Lee delegates the community of Pulau Maliangin to manage the nearby
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marine reserve, Maliangin Sanctuary, which is a pilot protected marine area.
She educates the community about their roles in conserving marine life and
teaches them the proper ways to maintain sustainable fishing industries.
Yoke Lee is very passionate about her work, and her greatest passion
is coral reef conservation. She enjoys communicating with the locals and
encouraging them to participate in preserving their marine heritage. She is a
visionary leader who serves the community through an intensive, engaging
community-building programme. She is a youth leader who has inevitably
gone through many ups and downs, but what sets her apart is her great
determination to make small differences in small communities, small steps
towards great changes, to create a better marine life for this universe.
Today I talked to my aunt and her 16-year-old daughter regarding Yoke
Lee and her efforts in coral reef conservation. I explained how I met this girl
and what she does for a living.
My aunt asked, “She went to Sabah alone ah?”
I nodded.
Then, she asked again, “Her mom no worry meh?”
I shrugged my shoulders and shook my head.
Then, she continued, “Aiyo, cannot wan… Like that very dangerous for
a girl to travel and work alone. Some more have to work with many
strangers. Like that no good.”
I replied, “But…”
My aunt continued, “But is good also-la… Still young, better travel
around and open her mind and also try to save the world by protecting those
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stones in the sea.”
I protested, “Aiyo auntie, coral reefs are not stone, they are a type of
animal.”
Then my cousin, Mei asked, “Jie, The coral reefs are so stony and hard,
why do you say that they are a kind of animal?”
I was unsure how to convince another person about that, as almost 90
percent of people I know think that coral reefs are plants (or stones) in the
sea. However, despite my shallow knowledge, I still tried my best to explain
coral reefs.
I gulped my saliva and replied, “Well, they are not exactly animals.
Coral reefs are living organisms that produce aragonite structures, which are
the stony corals. This is why people still assume that corals are not living
organisms.”
Mei skeptically asked, “Well, then why doesn’t this living organism
have a face, mouth, nose and hands like me and you?”
I answered my mischievous cousin with basic scientific principles
regarding the different characteristics of living organisms. Mei was very
satisfied and happy that she learned new things, but she was still very
skeptical to spread the word around because she was worried that her
friends might not believe her. However, she wishes that she could be like
Yoke Lee, to be able to travel around and do things that she likes. She
admires Yoke Lee’s determination and her belief in herself, and one day
hopes that she will be able to find in herself this same determination to
pursue her dreams.
40
From the conversation, I found out that my aunt seemed very skeptical
to see a young girl travelling around without family care and support. She
also said it was dangerous. I believe she sees this from a mother’s point of
view. However, deep down, I think she definitely felt a sense of envy and
pride towards Yoke Lee’s determination to preserve our coral reefs. On the
other hand, my cousin says she feels Yoke Lee had the freedom to choose
the things she wants to do. She may not name Yoke Lee as her unsung hero,
but now she knows the existence of another girl who pursued her dreams
regardless of what other people thought. Therefore, in a little way, this
unsung heroine has convinced another girl to pursue her dreams, and helped
a 40-plus single mother learn more about letting her daughter find her own
path of freedom.
Our country is full of heroic people who are not military leaders or
computer wizards, but who are doing something to keep alive the spirit of
protecting Mother Nature. That is why I am not particularly sure what the
meaning of unsung heroes is. Are they people who make big “differences”
but, in fact, have no effect on other people? Or are they those who make
small differences but have impacts on their communities? Well, it does not
really matter now as long as one makes a difference in another person’s life.
For example, I learnt about the environment and also my roles and
responsibilities in protecting our environment from Yoke Lee. And today I am
no longer an ordinary and plain girl, but rather a more focused person with
vision. This unsung heroine has made a difference in my life and with her
encouragement I have gained my own perspective through which I see the
world.
I do know that there are many individuals out there – most of them
unsung, unrecognised – who have acted on their beliefs and passions for a
more equal and peace-loving society. They fight alienation, dispel gloom, risk
the odds, and banish disenfranchising perceptions from people’s thoughts. It
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is important to remember these forgotten heroes from the past and keep on
looking around among us for the unknown heroes of today.
(Back to the top)
42
You passed! You did it!
(A letter to my hero)
By LIM WEI YUN
Photo of Wong Chung Heng
We may see, but not understand,
We may hear, but not comprehend.
Others jeer and call us strange,
While what we want is just a change
Of heart from them, some understanding.
Some hope, some love, some form of caring.
Welcome to my autistic mind.
Inside I’m sure that you will find
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A world so different from the one you see,
Maybe, you will then appreciate me…
Your life isn’t a highway, and it hasn’t been a dream. It isn’t an easy
road, and hasn’t been a piece of cake. Instead, the pathway of your
existence could be described as a mountain trail: steep and riddled with
vicious animals ready to strike at any moment. Occasionally, you fall into a
deep pothole, but you always manage to pull yourself up and force yourself
to keep going. You have an indomitable spirit, a fiery passion that keeps your
hopes ablaze and your ambitions in sight. Nothing can stop you from
achieving your goals and lighting the way to your future.
Not even the spectre of autism has managed to deter you from
becoming the great person you are. At four, neither you nor your twin
brother was able to speak. You’d suddenly laugh, cry or scream for no
apparent reason. When your mother dragged the two of you to the Lions
REACH Centre for Autistic Children, kicking and screaming, the volunteers
shook their heads and sighed. Even the kindly Dr. Susie See didn’t even
expect you to learn how to communicate.
However, both of you proved them wrong. Not only did you learn to
talk in the timeframe of one year, the two of you started to learn, almost
catching up to the level of normal children. Your parents saw hope; the
volunteers were ecstatic. Because of your remarkable progress, your parents
decided to take a chance, and enroll both you and your brother in a
mainstream primary school. The problem was: What school would accept a
pair of hyperactive autistic twins?
That was when Dr. See stepped in. With her help, your parents
managed to find a school with an understanding headmaster who gladly let
the two of you familiarise yourselves with the school surroundings for three
months before the first day of term. You would go to school, sit in the
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classroom, eat in the canteen, and learn how to use the toilets. Not that you
did that, though; you often peed in the drain during the school term, much to
the horror of your classmates and teachers. And although you don’t
remember this, some of your classmates bullied you. They put sand in your
water bottle, and called you names. You’d react aggressively by pulling the
class timetable off the walls, leaving your poor mother to stay up all night
making another one. Your future seemed bleak. There were times when your
parents felt totally helpless.
The years that followed, on the contrary, were a drastic improvement.
At the age of eight, you managed to memorise a speech after reading it only
three times, and that was a turning point for your mother. She decided that
you had a good memory, and she could encourage you to study hard. It
helped that you paid attention in class, and motivated yourself to revise
what you had been taught in school. With the help of the volunteers at the
centre, both you and your brother graduated from primary school and
proceeded to secondary school.
Secondary school wasn’t smooth sailing, however. Once, both you and
your brother were beaten up for attempting to persuade a bully to stop
fighting, and the teasing and bullying from your earlier years continued. You
were labeled “strange” and “queer.” Your Form 5 trial exam results were
horrendously bad. You laid awake at night, unable to sleep. You worried
about not being able to pass your exams. You worried about not being able
to continue your education. Most of all, you worried about your future, a
future most autistic people would never get to experience. People told you
not to put pressure on yourself, but you wanted to prove that you could do
anything.
To remedy your restlessness, you made yourself put in even more
effort. You stayed up reading until late. Your mother sat next to you every
night, coaching you and guiding you. You even sacrificed recess so that you
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could catch up on your weaker subjects! This determination may have
stemmed from your autism, or perhaps not. One thing that was certain,
however, was that you were a fighter! You had overcome your autism to
discipline yourself to sit down and concentrate, a task that is nearly
impossible for many autistic adults. No matter how difficult it was for you to
understand the simplest of sentences, you kept reading and re-reading until
comprehension finally dawned upon you.
Time flew, and it was all too soon before you had to collect your SPM
results. Nervously, you took the slip of paper from your teacher, wondering
whether your efforts had paid off. Then, a big grin spread over your face. You
had passed! You did it! You then requested to go to university, but your
mother disagreed. She thought that it would be better for you if she sent you
to Institute Perkim-Goon, and put you in a diploma course. Unfortunately,
your brother did not achieve the same victory; but he had no intention to
study any more. In his own words, he wanted to “sell eggs.”
You are now 22 years old, and you have almost passed your course,
with one more paper to go. You want to become a network specialist, and
you have described it as your “only goal in life.” You still display autistic
traits such as lack of eye contact, and the bullying still continues, but
according to Dr See, “Every time I see Chung Heng, he has superseded my
expectations.” Truly, not only have you exceeded what she expected of you,
but you have shown the world that there is hope for every child.
(Back to the top)
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He became my earsBy YVONNE FOONG
Photos of (Left to right) Reuben Koh, Yvonne
“I get uncomfortable when we talk about world unity. Society is driven
by greed for wealth and power. In history, all attempts to unify the world
through communism failed. Look what happened to the Soviet Union. I am
afraid The Cause would become totalitarian dictatorship. Maybe diversity is
good as it keeps every part balanced and in check,” I said to my friend
Reuben.
“Like I have said many times, Yvonne, God’s plan far exceeds our
imagination. Maybe we don’t see it possible now, but it will happen. God is
greater than us. Therefore, we can never know God’s plan until it happens.
And it will happen,” Reuben replied.
I met Reuben Koh Wei Pin on my first day in college. We studied
religion together. Sitting next to me, Reuben transcribed lecture notes to
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assist me in learning.
I am deaf. He became my ears.
Reuben came to mind when I read about a writing competition
organised by The Star newspaper, and theCICAK, a Malaysian pop and
politics webzine. We are to introduce an unsung young Malaysian who made
a heroic difference in society.
Unknown to many, Reuben is my hero. He is the wind beneath my
wings.
Pursuing tertiary education with physical disabilities is tough in
Malaysia. There is no law requiring varsities to provide for the hearing
impaired. Therefore, perseverance is vital in making it through school.
Times were difficult in the first two semesters, learning from lecturers
who primarily taught using verbal communication. Religion class was one of
those difficult experiences. I felt like an outcast, often pushed to the brink of
tears remembering how I used to be with perfect hearing. I could learn so
much better then.
As days passed without the provision of learning aids, I began
questioning the purpose of attending college at all. I felt silly sitting in class,
spending three hours staring blankly at the lecturer, knowing nothing. But I
went, day after day, looking forward to studying with Reuben.
In my second semester, Reuben and I did not share any classes.
Instead, we studied together twice a week over lunch. This was when I knew
him better, gaining insight to his personal beliefs, dreams, aspirations, and
what makes him tick.
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I fell in love with his child-like innocence – a gem to find in today’s
capitalistic, dog-eat-dog society. For every doubt I have pertaining to social
issues, religion, politics, and interpersonal relationships, Reuben always has
positive things to say. I often meet people who profess God‘s word literally
and mechanically. But Reuben is not that sort. He truly believes in his dream
for world unity, which has formed the foundation of his life as a Baha’i
believer and is evident in the way he carries himself.
Child-like innocence undeniably comes with some naiveté. Reuben
would forgive you for taking advantage of him. He does not mind sharing a
meal, sacrificing his time, or getting blamed for the fault of others. At first I
did not understand when Reuben apologised although he did nothing wrong.
It was his way of constant self-reflection. Reuben always strives to be a
better person.
To prove my point, I asked Reuben one day. “What if people fake their
interest in a subject just to spend time with you?”
“Well, that is between them and God. I just do my part,” he said.
When Reuben is strapped for cash, he would stretch the validity of his
prepaid phone card and settle for the plain fried noodles served in the
college cafeteria.
“My choice is economical,” he said with a cheeky smile and asked if I
want to share. I felt sorry, but it did not appear to bother him one bit.
Befriending Reuben is at times heartbreaking. Seeing those baggy,
panda-like eyes, as the result of many sleepless nights hurts me. Sacrificing
for friends and his commitment to God takes a toll on his personal time. A lot
of unfinished work in the day becomes a chore at night.
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Despite the time constraint, Reuben fares well in his academic
pursuits, evident when he was granted a scholarship by 8TV and Segi
Scholarship Fund. Suffice to say, Reuben is my motivation in studying. I am
impressed by how well-rounded and knowledgeable he is. A quick read on
any essay he has written is enough to prove my point.
Reuben loves the pursuit of knowledge, which I believe is the
foundation for societal development. Coincidentally, Reuben wishes to do a
master’s degree in sociology next. He is so motivating that I bought myself a
lab coat to hang in my room. Many tumours in my central nervous system
are gradually robbing my bodily functions. A mass growing and affecting my
eyesight has made my future uncertain. I want to be a psychologist, but
reality is biting hard. If not for Reuben, I would have lost grip on my goals.
His passion for God and the world means a lot to me.
My opinion of Reuben is also shared by other students in Segi College,
such as Shaun Liew and Pei Wen.
Shaun is touched by Reuben’s selfless attitude, tolerance, willingness
to forgive, and his commitment into helping others.
“Reuben has taught me to look at the beautiful side of the world, the
brighter side of things, and the value of friendship,” he says.
Pei Wen, who studied two subjects with Reuben in the summer of 2007
describes him as a respectable young man.
“I think he is an awesome friend and mature for his age too. People
tend to think guys mature slower. But it does not apply to Reuben. He knows
what he wants in life and set his priorities right. If I have half of that, I won‘t
be so lazy in my studies.”
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(Back to the top)
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The porterBy CRISSY WONG
If there is one thing to be learnt from Mount
Kinabalu, it must be this; that there are many artificial
things in this world. Of course, Kinabalu, as Malaysia’s
highest mountain, is teeming with natural wildlife, in
contrast to the world below which is spilling over with
non-biodegradable, mechanical things. But no; by
artificial, I don’t mean the latest gadget or handphone –
I’m referring to measuring sticks. We judge each other
daily, measuring according to status, fame or wealth.
But when faced with a mountain, a rope, and not much
else, you realise that no pride can exist here. Everything
else falls away and in the end, we’re all just muscle,
bone and sinew, seeking something from the relentless
earth beneath us.
Survival rests in the hands of those who know the
mountain well. And no one knows better than porters
like Teresa, who scale Mount Kinabalu daily for a living.
A Dusun by race, she is tied to the land; for the Dusun
believe that Mount Kinabalu is sacred land. The word
Kinabalu is derived from Aki Nabalu, which means “the
revered place of the dead” in the native language. The
Dusun are a graceful people, once a major tribe in the
state of Sabah. However, in recent years the
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populations of other races have grown to make the Dusun a minority. Due to
this, they struggle to find their identity and have no choice but to make a
living from their sacred land.
Teresa wakes early to prepare her six children for school, and then
heads to the Timpohan Gate, carrying the baggage of travelers in a
makeshift knapsack made of plastic canvas.
The load eclipses her diminutive figure, and yet she climbs with a quiet
elegance, aided only by a wooden walking stick and her rubber shoes that
cost RM4.50 a pair, a sharp contrast to the privileged holiday-makers around
her who wear branded things and carry carbon fibre hiking rods.
She pauses only to wait for the hikers who have employed her, and
gives a mysterious smile when they ask her “Berapa jauh lagi?” or “How
much farther?” in exasperated tones. Her comforting, if euphemistic answer
is always that there is only a little bit more.
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She weaves in and out of babbling Korean tourists who are wearing
bright red lipstick, scales past boulders, all the while taking care of her pack,
turning around once in a while to check if everyone is alright, or if someone
needs to be held by the hand or an injured soul needs carrying. Her own load
is up to 45 kilos at times.
She climbs till she reaches the Laban Rata inn at kilometre six.
Unloading the luggage, she will spend the night there, waiting for the hikers
to make it to the top and back before accompanying them back down. The
next day, she will start the same journey again, helping hiker after hiker to
accomplish the trail laid before them.
So, Teresa can carry heavy things, pursuing a vocation in a male-
dominated area while raising a family at the same time; but does this really
make her a hero?
Well, we all know the Malaysian Hero; the one who achieves
milestones to the pride of our country. Tunku Abdul Rahman witnessed the
fulfilment of his labour in the independence of Malaysia, M. Magendran and
N. Mohandas reached the summit of Mount Everest, and though Datuk Azhar
Mansor’s journey around the world was long, he ultimately reached his goal.
One cannot deny the contributions of these people, and yet we often forget
the other hero; the one who has no record to break, the one who sees no end
in sight, the one who has no destination to work towards, and yet works
anyway.
For what would Malaysia be without the lady selling beef noodles at the
hawker centre, the Ramlee burger guy down the street, the mamak around
the corner toiling day and night to give us oily bread and a place for
conversation, all at a small fee? Famished, that’s what we’d be. But more
than that, the very essence and fabric around which our community is woven
would be broken.
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What about the person at the Immigration Department, stamping
passports; or the farmers at the night market, always reliable for fresh
groceries? We could spend all day pointing out kinks and flaws in the system,
but the fact of the matter is that these people hold our country together,
oiling the gears and keeping the cogs of the wheel running.
And in the same way, Teresa may just be a humble porter, but without
the humble porter, the tourism industry surrounding Mount Kinabalu would
have difficulty holding itself together. One has to wonder what drives her to
perform such an arduous task, day after day. I can only guess that she feels
that to be a porter is one of the more honourable and worthwhile tasks. But
when I ask her why she is doing the job, she has no such ideas of herself.
She replies that she is merely supporting her family. And so she carries her
burden, sustaining our mountain, one load at a time. She may not have
status, fame, or wealth, but she embodies humility, strength and tenacity.
That, surely, is the true measure of a person.
(Back to the top)
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About the competition
The stories featured in this book were the top picks from theCICAK’s 2nd
Annual Writing Competition. Before we share the results of the competition
with you, here are the details behind the competition itself.
ThemeYoung Malaysians You Need to Know
AbouttheCICAK, a Malaysian political and pop culture magazine, was on a global
search for young Malaysian heroes in conjunction with the country’s 50th
Independence Day.
Each participant wrote about and photographed an unsung Malaysian hero
who had persevered against all odds to succeed, or had helped his or her
friends, family, society or country in unique ways. We were looking for
heroes who had not been highlighted in the press. The stories needed to tell
us what it means to be Malaysian.
Prizes worth a total of RM5,000 were awarded to the winners.
This competition aimed to document young Malaysian voices due to the lack
of proper youth, ethnic, religious, class, gender and sexual minority
representation in mainstream media. theCICAK’s goals are to create
awareness and discussion on issues that affect Malaysian youth and remind
Malaysian policymakers that young people should be taken seriously.
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theCICAK collaborated with The Star and Inkyhands, an online Malaysian
literary magazine. The competition was supported by Pusat Komunikasi
Masyarakat (KOMAS), an organization that promotes community and public
education through documentary film-making. A US$2,500 grant from the
Swarthmore Foundation at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania funded the
competition.
PrizesA) Top Three Stories (selected by judges)
First prize, RM3,000, published in theCICAK and The Star
Second prize, RM1,000, published in theCICAK
Third prize, RM500, published in theCICAK
B) Most Outstanding Hero (selected by theCICAK readers)
RM500, published in theCICAK
Judges1. Jeff Ooi, award-winning Malaysian blogger
2. Marina Mahathir, newspaper columnist and women’s rights activist
3. Nicholas Wong, editor of Inkyhands and published poet
4. Poh Si Teng, director and co-founder of theCICAK
Grading Scheme30 percent for diversity (geographic, ethnic, religious, class, gender, sexual-
minority and/or socio-economic factors).
30 percent for writing style and structure
20 percent for substance of story
20 percent for creativity
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(Back to the top)
ResultsFirst place
Her father’s voice
by Deborah Wong Chin Lee
Featuring Sarah Lasung
Second place
A hundred times
by Chong Yong Wei
Featuring Tan Bing Xuan
Third place
The happy child
by Clement Chan Zhi Li
Featuring Brandon Chan
People’s Choice Award
A hundred times
by Chong Yong Wei
Featuring Tan Bing Xuan
(Back to the top)
About theCICAK
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Founded in June 2005 as an online socio-political youth magazine,
theCICAK hopes to develop a generation of thinking Malaysian youth. Our
team of editors and volunteers source critical articles and writers, coach
them with their writing, and moderate healthy discussions on the site.
Since then, we have built a fast growing network of more than 100
writers and editors, and have published more than 260 articles, some of
which have been republished in local newspapers and magazines.
We currently receive a loyal following of more than 2,000 unique
visitors to our website every day, with each visitor reading two articles on
average. We have received both local and international media coverage. We
also work with major newspapers and partners to promote healthy debates.
The bigger pictureMalaysians younger than the age of 35 will soon constitute 65 percent of the
country by year 2010. Will we have a generation of intelligent voters and
capable leaders?
TheCICAK will make sure that this is so.
Help us by writing or telling people about us.
Learn more about how you can help.
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Share this e-book with everyone!
http://thecicak.com/ebook
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