Doctor - a zigzag journey

Part 11 - "Man in the Net"

Background: 1980-1985 (Age 13 - 18 years)

"Atom is a fundamental element. When two or more atoms bond together, a molecule is formed," Mr. Cheung explained enthusiastically, "...the differences between solid, liquid, and gas are ...."

Mr. Cheung taught Science. I drew a molecule of "H2O" and the bond that held the atoms together. My eyes were fixed at the bond. Without a bond, many things including relationship will fall apart. The bond within my family was and always is strong. Ah Ba's death had not weakened the bond because Ah Ma had shouldered his roles as well.

"Once a bond is formed, it is not easily broken. Certain amount of energy is required to break a bond....." Mr. Cheung continued in a voice with a hint of excitement. The excitement was exploring science from the fundamental of bonds formation and disintegration. Nonetheless, I wasn't looking forward to any disintegration of a bond within my family.

The bell rang. The students rose to their feet and chanted in unison, "Terima kasih, cikgu!" ("thank you, teacher"). It was the last lesson for the day. After packing my textbooks, workbooks and references books, I headed to pick up my bicycle at a shed.

On my way to the shed, I met my classmate, KS, who was chatting with a few boys. The chat was about puberty - a commonly expected topic among teenagers. It was about physiological changes such as acne, pubic hair, voice change etc. Most of the information was obtained from newspaper or hearsay as the Internet was not yet commonly available. That information did seep into my head although it was subject to further verification. I was still looking forward to the formal "biology" lesson later in the year.

When I reached home in the evening, both my sisters had conducted tuition classes and helped Ah Ma in preparing dinner. I helped washing the dishes. Then, I got ready to do my school assignments after a shower. The water was cool in the evening, but we could not afford a water-heater.

My siblings and I studied in our living room on a foldable wooden table. The squeaky sound from the rusty hinge-joints of the table could be noticeable when all of us were doing our assignments or reading silently. The silence was always broken by my questions to my siblings about how to do some assignments. Learning the science and mathematical principles and applying them to solve questions were intellectually stimulating. Memorising facts and figures in history and geography could be mundane. Reading articles and writing a composition in Malay, English, and Chinese were instrumental in surviving in the "tri-lingual" environment.

All of the above were my routines which had become my motivated "learning habits". Once in a while, I had a break at night - watching TV or movies. We had a black and white TV without a video. Our neighbour had a video and the family watched Hong Kong drama series titled "Man in the Net" which was my entertainment, from which I learned Cantonese. The lead actor, Donald Chow Yun-Fat, and the lead actress, Carol Do Do Cheng, were famous in the era. Many audiences were obsessed in watching the drama series. I was one of their fans but I was not obsessed by the entertainment as I was self-disciplined in terms of studying and I had a goal to do well in my study. The journey towards my goal was far and challenging. I persevered.