I LOVE YOU VERY MUCH

Today, I miss my mom.

When I was refilling my fountain pen’s ink, I suddenly remembered mommy.

Mom was a school teacher. She has the most beautiful handwriting I have ever seen. She said in those days, teachers must pass the ‘writing’ exam before they can teach.

When I got ‘number one’ in the final exam in standard one, mom and dad bought me my first fountain pen. When I was in standard two I was already learning how to write ‘cursive’ – yes cursive handwriting.



Mom would hold my hand and fingers and helped me to make the ‘circular movements’ to produce beautiful handwriting on the special exercise book with coloured lines.

She would say… “Cuba Ami tulis tentang cuti sekolah, satu mukasurat. Nanti emak check… Wah, cantik tulisan Ami, tapi boleh improve lagi… Sayang Ami…” And she would kiss me.

And I was so encouraged. I would sleep late at night, just to write and write to impress mom. I would copy pages and pages of Hans Christian Andersen’s stories to improve my handwriting.

And that got me addicted to reading... from 're-writing' Hans Christian Andersen, Enid Blyton and the Hardy Boys Series. Then dad bought volumes and volumes of Encyclopedia Britannica... Wow... more to write!!!

My handwriting today is not nice like mom’s but every time I hold the fountain pen, it would remind me of mommy’s love.

The other day I misplaced my fountain pen and I cried, not because I lost an expensive pen but fountain pens remind me of how mommy taught me to seek knowledge.

Ami sayang mak…

I will be back this weekend mom… Your son misses you. He needs you. Sometimes he feels so alone in a crowded and at times cruel world.