somewhere on my way, Anna N. Schnieden [best summer reads TXT] 📗

The principal nun.

 

 

I looked at her for a moment. I did not know which one I should answer first…why did she ask all in one question? I was 6…hello! (in my thoughts).

 

“Yes ma’am. Mr. Yong, my mother’s friend, he said I’d do well in school.” Me.

 

 

 

“I see. You shouldn’t be in school, yet. Can you read?” The principal nun.

 

 

Bummer! Funny as hell, how could I? I had a problem with reading…hello, that was why I was there! Chance of running away was not an option better shown my stupidity.

 

“No ma’am, I cannot, but I would love too.” Me.

 

 

Aha, that was better, wasn’t it? Then she said,

 

 

“Well, we’ll get your mother back here.” The principal nun.

 

 

In that moment, I was even more frightened. I might have been in a considerable amount of trouble, either the principal nun would not have me in the school or I just showed my stupidity, why was I in this situation? I was just a chick for god’s sake! When the mother got back in, the principal nun was explaining that the only chance I had was to start schooling during the summer’s break and pass all of the exams.

 

Well, that was meant immediately, as everyone was in such a hurry and if I could not pass the exams…well, everyone could have found me at a dump truck! Furthermore, the mother had a brilliant way of encouraging me, which I could not resist!

 

“You shouldn’t need to worry! Most dogs can be trained in a month and you’d be the smartest one!” The mother.

 

That was the mother’s intelligence, therefore, if I could not learn all that shit in 2 months and 16 days, I would be worse than a fucking dog. So perfect!

 

When we got back from the school, Mr. Yong was waiting for the mother, he was not just the mother’s friend, but he was also our neighbour. Mr. Yong was born and bred Vietnamese; he moved to Thailand in 1960 and he had a Thai wife, and 2 children. He was very white and pretty tall. I thought he was mixing with something that was not

 

 

 

Vietnamese, but I did not ask him. He loved drinking, but he was not a kind of a practical drunk ass, he was a friendly drunken one. I had never seen his wife or his children; some talkers said she took his children and ran away. I liked him; he was a generous and caring person, who always said,

 

“Don’t let the damn world change you! And always be good.” Mr. Yong.

 

 

I was not sure at the time what it meant, and all I knew was that he always worried about my well-being. Maybe, because he lost his children from a divorce battle, which was because there was no way that foreign-born could win that battle under Thai law. One evening, he and I were sitting in front of his house; he was telling me about what he did for a living in Vietnam, that he used to work for a hydro company.

 

I did not know what his job was in Thailand. Sometimes he came to visit in the afternoon, and other times it was late morning and he looked like he just woke up with a hangover. Anyway, while I was watching passersby, he told me how much he missed his hometown and how fun it was when he was working at the Vietnam Hydro Company. He asked me,

 

“Aye, do you know, how high that hydro pole is?” Mr. Yong.

 

 

And he pointed one of his fingers toward a hydro pole; I was looking at the destination of his finger with an effortful thought, but as I had not proved myself as a smart dog yet, my answer was what a normal child of my age would say,

 

“No, I don’t know, sir.” Me.

 

 

“Oh, that one would be about 12 meters, at least.” Mr. Yong.

 

 

“Wow, it’s very tall, Mr. Yong. How can they fix it, if something is gone wrong?” Me.

 

 

 

“Well honey, they climb up, up, up, until they reach there.” Mr. Yong.

 

 

And he pointed his finger at the top of the hydro pole.

 

 

I did not know what I said or what my reaction had expressed? It was… Obscure!

Before I had any chance to say anything, he was on the pole…up, up, up, with his bare feet and bare hands! I was in a feeling of disturbed surprise from what my eyes registered. I did not know what to do except make the instinctive expressions of lively amusement as loud as a small 6-year-old could possibly do. Next thing I knew, the mother was next to me and looked at me like the day she dumped my belongings. Then she started yelling at Mr. Yong,

 

“Come down, you stupid old man. What are you doing? You are going to get yourself killed!!” The mother.

 

But there was no answer; he just held onto the pole in an awkward position that was more like a monkey that had climbed up on something that did not feel familiar…and hmmm the irony of his silence. Later, more people came, they shouted…they yelled, but he did not move up or down. I thought he liked it there…like Spiderman…felt like home again. Momentarily, I was genuinely grateful that he just acknowledged me about…the fixing and, at the same moment, I heard him…shouting, spontaneously with my thought!

 

“Help me. I cannot move!” Mr. Yong.

 

 

Lol crap! Did I miss something? Eventually, the actual electricians came with the actual equipment, helping Mr. Yong down to the ground with a 1000 baht ticket! (Baht or THB is Thai’s currency). When all the fans were gone from watching him on the pole, Mr. Yong walked back to the front of his house and started drinking…again! I did not care that the mother who was still yelling, because in my thought was something…so exciting, well, it was not every day I saw a simple man climb a hydro pole. While I was still entertained by what had just happened, the mother turned to me with an impossible emotional expression on her face,

 

 

 

 

 

“Don’t you dare climb up there! I won’t pay for the bloody ticket, and certainly I’ll leave you there without a thought!!” The mother.

 

I wanted to say something, but when I looked at her, the impossible expression was still there so, the best option for me, was to shut up. Literally, I would have said, “Don’t worry, Ma’am, as I haven’t proved myself as the smartest dog you’re waiting to see, I’m absolutely not going to prove that I can live on the pole!”

 

After the mother walked back to her shop, Mr. Yong was still looking at the pole…thinking, I did not ask him what was he thinking because I did not want him to cause any more excitement, but then he broke the silence,

 

“Oh, Aye, don’t feel dejected. She doesn’t like to express…love. If you climb up, she probably wouldn’t leave you there.” Mr. Yong.

 

“I doubt that! I don’t know why she’s always angry…at me, unlike when she’s with the fat boy.” Me.

 

Mr. Yong was laughing, as he knew whom I had meant.

 

 

“Aye, one day you’ll understand her. One day you’ll know how much she loves you. I lost my children, never a day goes by, I don’t miss them.” Mr. Yong.

 

“Why don’t you visit them? They will be very happy!” Me.

 

 

“Oh well, it’s complicated. I wish I’d had done things differently. There is nothing I can do, besides, I don’t know where they are.” Mr. Yong.

 

Mr. Yong was tearing, unable to say anymore…. I looked at him for a moment then I looked away toward the sky. I was thinking about my own father…feeling hysterical every

 

 

 

time when I thought of him. I did not know why or how, but the feeling came since I had questions about him…in my thoughts, maybe I was still a…puppy and needed…someone to protect me…Therefore, I liked to think of him a lot and when I was alone…I looked up at the sky and hoped he was thinking of me as well.

 

The mother never talked about him, but my aunties told me that he wanted to take me with him. He begged her several times; therefore I never asked because I was scared of the impossible expression of hers, I always thought that my father was sitting somewhere, feeling…desolate and regretful and, maybe, he looked up at the sky…thinking of me.

 

When I got out of my thoughts, Mr.Yong had already fallen asleep, but I did not wake him. It was getting dark…soon stars would show themselves…brightening and I was hoping Mr. Yong’s children may have looked up too!

 

Finally, the time of my demonstration had come; the mother woke me up about 5:00 am to get ready for the school. I had to stay there for 2 months before actual classes began. I already packed all my stuff, which were 7 T-shirts, 7 pants, 7 panties, lucky 7??... a toothbrush, toothpaste, and a comb. All of it put into a small bag, which was a brown colour with a white rope around the opening, and it was better than my old one! Although I wished it was blue or yellow…oh well, never mind.

 

When we arrived, we had to wait for the principal nun because she was busy with something. An old lady at the front desk informed us that it was going to be a few minutes. After we waited for sometime, the old lady told us that the principal nun was ready; I held my bag against my chest and followed the mother to the principal’s office. She welcomed us with a light smile, so I was pleased that she was on the level with her manner of greeting.

We sat down on the chairs at her desk. She gave the mother some papers to sign and…turned to me.

 

“Arya, are you ready?” The principal nun.

 

 

 

Ah…shit, ready for what? To be the smartest dog? I thought we just got here few minutes ago, oh well, better say something…

 

“Yes, ma’am.” Me.

 

 

That was a lie, I was not ready for any kind of brilliantly intelligent thing just yet, but I did not have any better words to say!! While I was circling my thoughts, a 75-year-old nun walked in with a little girl. The principal nun looked up and said,

 

“Oh, here you are. Come here Moonlight.” The principal nun.

 

 

Moonlight was walking toward the principal nun, but her eyes were fixed, wide opened at me. I was afraid she might bang into something before she reached the principal nun; fortunately, she did not.

 

“Moonlight, this is Aye. She’s going to stay here for this summer break. And she’ll be your roommate as well.” The principal nun.

 

She was still staring at me like I was an imaginary creature that was typically ugly or anything else, what the hell! Before the principal nun said anything, she broke out from whatever the bloody hell she was thinking,

 

“Why she’s so…awful white? She looks white like a ghost. Look at her eyes, are they going to turn yellow like the dirty shit cat behind our school, Sister Waree?” Moonlight.

 

“Be polite, Moonlight, and watch your language!” The principal nun.

 

 

That was very nice of her, found a perfect answer…for me, maybe something was wrong with me and that was Moonlight’s opinion.

 

 

 

Well, I have got to say, at the time I thought she was a little bitchier than the actual…bitch.

 

Everyone was silent, the principal nun started her CT Scan of me, and that was fucking brilliant because, at the same moment, everyone including the mother was looking at me, especially the mother. Aha, was something wrong with me? Before my brain started…any…ideas, I heard something very indistinguishable.

 

“Oh yes, I haven’t noticed that before.” The mother.

 

 

That was the mother; I did not think she was in love with me, or had any kind of interest in me, and if someone had mentioned something about me to her…that would be a mistake.

 

Later on, the 75-year-old nun who was also a school keeper took me to the dormitory building. The dormitory was a white 6-storey