not that the other people in my life are dumb (narrow-minded yes, sometimes) but no one bothers to rebut seriously; they would either (a) murmur "m-hmm" and move on to the next topic or (b) offer a simple solution that seems like a Hansaplast on a broken bone. but what mum does is twist the topic a bit, offer a strong rebuttal that forces me to think about my answers. my weakness is my inability to think a few steps forward. this results in an "incomplete answer", akin to a temporary solution to a problem. that's where mum comes in and "slaughters" me, giving a rebuttal that may or may not be strong. therefore, it forces me to think. think. and think. i love it. and what's more, the banter goes on in four languages at once (Malay, English, Mandarin and Hakka) so it adds to the challenge (and humor).
but lately mum is starting to fall into the trap of "m-hmm"s, and i'm worried. maybe she's tired. she ain't the lass she used to be. but i'm doing us a favor here by averting brain shrinkage and engage each other in debates that work the mind, make us think. these verbal engagements aren't limited to summoned topics of conversation; sometimes they stem from what we are currently doing at the moment, or my choices in life. it is a good way to verbalize and hence further clarify the pros and cons of my choices.
i miss mum. and debates.
p/s: i wish i can attend proper English classes, a course in Professional Writing and/or be writing articles in a publication (KLue, Juice, or The Nut Graph, perhaps?) English is my forte... i may still have a lot to learn but i am sure i am one (or three) classes above lots of people already =)
No comments:
Post a Comment