This is part four of our ongoing series – Carpe Diem in Hong Kong.
The following is an image taken during the holiday season at the end of 2008 in the MTR subway Central station in Hong Kong. Gleaming Crystals is evidence of Hong Kong’s growing affluence as Asia World’s City and the pearl of the orient.
Photo_ADRIAN.
The following is a short story previously presented at the Richard Hugo House 72 Hour Challenge in Seattle, Washington on February 12, 2009.
“Are we there yet?”
The ward nurse patted the blue-bunnied shoulder, and murmured into the hopeful face looking up at her. “Not yet, honey, a little while longer.”
It satisfied Angie, and she went back to rocking slightly in her chair, her arms folded across her chest, locked in an endless journey; hopeless, but full of hope.
The room was quiet this late in the day. Each chair filled; an entire cafeteria of mental illnesses. Pick your favorite one, we had them all. I had been observing the woman by the window all day. She sat alone and the nurses let her be in her own private “do not disturb” zone. If anyone approached, she only giggled and got agitated, angry. The others learned to stay away.
I’d heard her story earlier, nurses filling in the newbie. They said she’d killed a man. Lured him into his basement with a phone call, braced the door shut and then flooded it. They say she stayed to hear his screams. The firemen found her nearby when they responded to a call about a broken fire hydrant. She had been his lover, they said, but he broke it off. I guess she was mad.
Out of the corner of my eye, I could see a nurse tilt her head at me. I heard a soft “we leave her alone” before they moved off, whispering. I couldn’t hear, but I knew what they were saying. You see, I too was there that day. I saw her go out of my house. I too went to the basement and beheld the broken bodies of my beautiful babies, the blood-stains in their hair washed out by the cold water. She’d come into my home and beat them to death while they were sleeping. I heard her giggle as she called my husband to tell him what she’d done and where she’d put them.
I’d told him she was crazy. I told him to stop screwing my sister or stop coming home. They thought I was in the garden all that time, protecting my new plants from the rain. They thought I didn’t know. But Carol didn’t brace the basement door shut, and she didn’t stay to listen to him scream. I did.
PROSE_CARLA
My First Four Crayons was inspired by childhood memories of going to American style restaurants where they would hand out a paper place mats for kids to color, doodle, connect the dots and so forth. Each time, they would also provide a set of non-toxic crayons with the three primary colors and green. The following is an abstract piece of art only using the colors: red, blue, yellow and green.
Recently, I had attended the fellowship at a local church. That night, however, wasn’t just any fellowship session; instead it featured a workshop about “What is Fellowship?” In it, a church elder surnamed Chan, discussed to us the importance of fellowship especially to college students. During the speech, he emphasized the three F’s of fellowship: function, foundation and fruit. He was able to articulately explain and even market the significance of the fellowship in the Christian church.
First, he asked “Why do you all participate in fellowship?” By being interactive with the audience, he was able to sway away from the stereotypical church workshop and lectures, with over an hour of one-way verbal communication. By adding our participation to the speech with the use of the overhead projector, he created a group-oriented feel, focusing on learning through discussion and participation. In response to his question, many participants responded with the usual, “to eat, to have fun, to spend more time with God and his teachings.” Soon, Elder Chan developed a long list on the transparency, which was displayed using the overhead projector. The long list evolved into what he called the function of the fellowship.
In support of his purpose, he also mentioned numerous verses from the Bible, including from chapter one from the First Epistle of John. “That which we have seen and heard we declare to you, that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ (I John 1:3)” and continuing until “But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.” (I John 1:7). By using the Bible to support his views, Elder Chan was able to be more persuasive in his talk, as even if one does not choose to believe his words, one would be more swayed to trust the words of the Bible.
Next, he compared it to secular applications as well. There are many entities that have groups that are like fellowships, from companies with board of directors to associations who meet together and talk, as well as support groups of all sorts for different purposes. All of these function as a extension of oneself, as a way to join with others to achieve a common goal.
The common goal in terms of fellowship is reinforced by the foundation of fellowship, another characteristic of fellowship. According to Elder Chan, the fellowship’s foundation is represented by the teachings of God. As stated above, there are many verses from the Bible that highlight the importance of fellowship, from Ephesians to I John. Even long ago, the fellowship existed as ones mean to further relate with God.
Lastly, Elder Chan emphasized the fruit of fellowship. The fruit represents one’s reward for participating in fellowships. He continued his interaction with us by asking us what we think the fruit is. “What kinds of fruit do you see here at the fellowship? Apples? Oranges?” The participants in the room laughed. The fruits of fellowship were simply a combination of the effects of the function and the foundation. Many functions were designed and tweaked to meet the needs of the members. He also mentioned numerous practical advantages to fellowships such as the ability to allow its members (especially the younger and more vulnerable) to avoid participating in improper events and gatherings or illegal activities. He also mentioned the significant degree of gratification involved when talking about his experience of his fellowship in Tacoma, Washington over 30 years ago becoming a significant church today.
Overall, Elder Chan did a wonderful job in presenting to us “What is fellowship?” He simplified it in three categories: Function, the Foundation and the Fruit. For the most part, I found his speech very inspirational and encouraging participating in fellowships more often to further relate with God. His articulate and interactive way of presentation was helpful, using media and verbal interaction with good tone of voice. One thing that he lacked was providing handouts. If a handout that summarized his presentation was provided, then I would have taken in more from his workshop.
Ever since a very young age, I had great difficulty with public speaking. Growing up as an only child, I was known to be the shy kid, which did not help my communication skills. I never liked giving presentations in class. The first time I had discovered improvement in my oratory ability was in 2005, during the freshman year of high school, where I gave a speech to a group of over 400 students. Yet, I continued to be nervous, which caused me to speak at a fast rate. However, I began to enjoy giving presentations and speeches. Even at the beginning of this quarter, I was nervous when I had to talk in this class.
Throughout this quarter, one major improvement I made was reducing my speed in public speaking.
From the first impromptu speech, I was given the question “Which person from the past would I like to meet?” Impromptu allowed me to be decisive and think of what to say on the spot, which is very crucial in many of life’s situations. For the story telling, I learned the importance of shortening speeches to be more succinct. From the technical presentation, I learned the possibility of having technical difficulties. From the retirement speech, I applied concepts from previous experiences in the quarter but realized that I needed to improve in nonverbal communication.
Overall, I learned a lot this quarter and made improvement in my public speaking. Of all the speeches, the impromptu appeared to be most useful in many of life’s situations where one will need to make a speech in front of a large audience without preparation. That is also the case in conversational communication with others. Yet, there are many areas that need improvement especially in the nonverbal communication.