Maggie, Angie, Ashley and Ah Qin told me they were on "Project Fatten" and the test subject was me. The project duration was 6 days and the job was to make sure I gain so much weight until my mother cannot recognise me.
To my surprise, everyone I met (who knew me before) told me, "You lost weight!" This morning, I told my mum that I ran out of shorts to wear, as most of them had been sent to Perth by batches over time. Mum being mum took action immediately and began rummaging dad's cupboard for shorts that he bought but never wore. I was alarmed, not by her quick actions but the thoughts of wearing something like those. I decided I rather walk out in my briefs to meet my secondary school friends tonight.
Fortunately, I found my previous beach volleyball shorts. I skipped them ceremoniously because I wasn't supposed to be able to fit into those any more. You know, those were the days where I had tan, a better body and lotsa hair and most importantly less fat. I wouldn't even try getting into those after I stopped going to the beach. The 'piaaak' sound of the velcro of the shorts due to pent up tension of wrapping around rolls of fat always broke my fragile heart. This morning though, I had no choice. It's either walking around in underwear or ah pek shorts. So I attempted the beach shorts again. Surprise surprise, I managed to slip them on so here I go. To the bank! No, I'm not robbing the bank just because I can fit into my old shorts again. That was tasks on the list to complete.
So perhaps the folks are right. I did lose some weight. But Project Fatten doesn't sound quite right to me despite everything that it involves sound really nice. Such as stuffing me with home made delights. These people really know me well. That was absolutely nothing I appreciate more than home-made stuff. That explained the longest conversation I had with a male on Saturday night was about his DIY passion, tools and the DIY culture in Australia. I took on pastry after pastry from cookies to rolls to buns. They were awfully good. Fortunately no mor-peng Hello Kitty cakes thus far. Like I said, they knew what I like, they probably knew what I hate as well.
I really wanna do something in return for my community here each time I return, however short my stay is. I wanted to build a temporary ramp that they badly need for them but no matter how I calculate, I am short of supplies, equipment and most importantly, time. Perhaps on the next return, if the authorities still make no action by then. So, I'll have to think of something else to return the love to these folks. The people here continues to be holding me back, making Singapore relevant to my life. Otherwise I would have let go long ago. This spirit is what I sorely miss during my childhood. We used to live life like that. Doors open, unlocked and neighbors could come and go any time they wish and left alone without supervision in one another's houses. The trust that money cannot buy. Some people live their entire life without experiencing this kind of thing. Trust me, I had it, I lost it and when I see it again, I know what I am talking about. This is a valid reason enough to warrant a consideration to make a return someday in future.
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