Thwack!
Madam Mona and I looked up from our lunch packets to stare at the smiling face of Khai. He had just deposited two Malay newspapers on the table.
“Read it! My kids are featured in the papers.”
Duly impressed, I read the headlines – Identical Triplets Cry on Their First Day of School.
I gasped for two reasons:
1. I didn’t know that Khai had triplets!
2. Khai, or rather his kids are now famous!
The first newspaper showed three happy looking boys. The second one, however, displayed a picture of a tearful looking Khai Jr, crouching underneath his school desk. His two other brothers were nowhere to be seen.
I got to thinking. Why on earth would triplets cry on their first day of school? There were three of them to face up to any scary schoolmate. Surely there’s power in numbers. But apparently, even triplets can feel insecure in a brand new environment without the comfort of their parents.
And then I started reminiscing about my first day at school. I did not recall any crying but there sure was a lot of anticipation. I was all of 7 but I had been longing to go to primary school for as long as I could remember. I would put my small feet into my sisters’ white school shoes and trot about in them. Being able to wear that dark blue uniform (which now I think looks positively garish) was my ultimate dream.
Soon the day came when I got to wear my own school shoes and don my own school uniform. I woke up bright eyed and early and couldn’t wait to get a move on to my school. Mom was with me, holding my hand and we took a brief tour around the school compound.
“And there’s the canteen where you can buy food and snacks with your pocket money,” Mom said cheerily, gesturing to a rather ramshackled building with rows and rows of wooden benches and two counters. Something bright and shiny caught my eyes.
And Mom’s words felt like magic to my ears.
“Mom, can I have my pocket money now?” I held my free palm out.
“Sure, sweetie. Are you hungry? You have bread in your tupperware,” Mom reminded me as she dug her purse and gave me 20 sen. Don’t laugh. 20 sen was big money to me back then.
With the 20 sen in my hands, I led my mom to the counter.
The canteen operator looked at me enquiringly. I pointed to a shiny wrapper with the word Kum Kum boldly emblazoned upon it. “I want that.”
“That’ll be 20 sen,” he said. Now, you see why I love 20 sens. The exchange was made. Thus began a lifelong relationship with junk food :P
And I let go of my mom’s hand.
Mom ruffled my head, “Time for your first class. Will you be alright on your own?”
With yummy Kum Kum by my side, what could go wrong? I told my mom that I’ll be fine and marched excitedly to my class. Mom trailed behind, made sure that I settled in ok and left just after the first class started.
There were hardly any crying kids in class. Maybe we were raised the hardy way back then. I remembered making quite a number of new friends that day. And the first Malay word I learned at school was Isnin (Monday).
During my first year at school, I also learned that there were nice friends and not-so-nice friends who lie through their teeth and back stab you when you least expect it. I learned that there were dedicated and kind teachers, as well as lazy ones. I learned that the scariest kind of teachers were not the ones who were strict and make you work hard but rather, those who have unpredictable and temperamental moods.
And most importantly, in my Primary One year, I learned that my family who knows me through and through, would believe my word rather than my backstabbing friend’s and come to my defense and support when I most needed it.
Behind this brave Primary One student was a family who believed in her. And that made all the difference in sailing through the all the challenges that primary school had to dish out to her.