Growth

Meet the Spongebob clan. :) 

growth;
[n.] the process of developing physically, mentally or spiritually.

Growth is rather interesting. I reckon that it can be seen in unprecedented situations, especially one that includes conversations with people–be it with family, friends, strangers or observing strangers communicating with other strangers.

* * *

It was the Saturday after Father’s Day. My paternal extended family tend to celebrate significant occasions either a week earlier or later; in order to be first to enjoy the scrumptious, mouth-watering delicacies or to basically avoid the Malaysian crowd.

My father is part of a huge family of 12 siblings (including himself). I have 24 cousins, 3 nephews and 5 nieces. So, on special events like Father’s Day, we’ll normally spare our mothers and head out for dinner. This time, it was buffet! That’s the best part about having an extremely big family tree.

* * *

We, my mother and I, were queuing to pay our parking ticket. It was the closing hour of the hotel; therefore a long queue was inevitable.

During this typical situation, the usual happens. People were furiously tapping their fingers away while some hung neutral expressions on their faces. Others were making small talks, with hope that the clock would tick faster and the queue would get moving.

I, however, had my attention on a group of children that were seated at a corner, probably waiting for their parents that were in line. There were two girls and a boy. They must be less than seven years old. Their giggles reached my ears and I could not hold back the grin that formed on my lips. Cheesy, I know. Children are the epitome of happiness. They spread joy on breads and magically turn people’s frown upside down.

Out of a sudden, the little girl that wore a pink princess dress stood up and faced her two friends. “Now, let’s take turns to tell each other what we want to become.” She said with a her child-like accent. I won’t lie; I was amazed at her fluency in her speech. Kids these days can talk. No kidding.

“You first,” she pointed at the boy in the group.

He matched his green and white-checkered dress shirt with a pair of jeans. Caught off guard, he remained silent. He was in the midst of coming up with a witty answer but the little girl that threw him the question went on saying, “I know what you want to be. You want to be a house husband!” she exclaimed happily, as if she has gotten an A+.

I laughed at her remark, mentally of course. The boy flashed a cheeky smile, embarrassed, and covered his face with his hands, succumbing to his friend’s teasing. The little princess then diverted her attention to her other friend, who had a cowgirl get up.

Little cowgirl took a deep breath and garnered all her courage as she stood up and said, “I want to be a doctor.” The little princess and soon-to-be-house-husband wowed and cheered cowgirl on. The rest of their conversation remained a mystery to me as the queue started moving.

* * *

I can vividly recall the similar conversations shared with my cousins when we were little. We dreamed big; we wanted to become astronauts, work in the police department, become doctors, lawyers, teachers and fire fighters.

I remember the times we sweat when we played hide and seek, ice and fire, police and thief, sometimes we even pretended to be doctor and teachers. Back then, technology wasn’t at its finest. We only had each other for entertainment, and I reckon my childhood became brighter with the presence of all my cousins, my ohana.

As we shared a meal together that Saturday, we no longer chat about how much angpow money we received, or asked each other about the weather. Instead, our bonding sessions have evolved into something more. Something deeper; it was as if our time in the kiddy pool was up.

When we were younger, we shared about our dreams. Fast forward to now, we talked about making them come true. From ADP to SAM to A-Levels, we debated about the pros and cons and the suitability of the course for an individual. My other cousins bragged about how college life is undeniably more relaxed compared to the rigid education system that I’m currently going through.

We talked about driving and cars. I’m no driver, so my cousins did all the talking. They did not hesitate to unravel me to their many harmless accidents that took place on roads. It was hilarious. I’m in the midst of getting my license. Driving is fun, but be sure to not let the clutch, clutch you.

* * *

Growth was evident during dinner the other night. We were children that used to carry out kiddy conversations. Now, we are young adults entering adulthood; in which we will decipher life a tad more. It is also a chapter entailing our future, our goals and our desires.

It’s heartwarming to see my cousins growing up and becoming adults; although they still act like a kid, laugh like hyenas and munch too much on extremely long bread sticks like nobody’s business.

If you’d asked me, growth never cease to fascinate me. It catches me off-guard and it teaches me life’s greatest lesson, one day at a time.

I may not know what my future holds, but I know He’s holding my future.