Chan  Wai Mun

To the people that are suffering, there are hopes on you.

I was born into a very poor family. Everyday, all of my family members had no choice but to eat only white rice in order to survive. In some critical moments, whenever they had financial crisis, they had no choice but to beg people to give them time for payment to the extent of kneeling down to gain sympathy. This has been happening since I was born until I was 10 years old, everything started to change from bad to worse.

My parents, they changed. They started to beat me with weapons such as axes and knives until I was left injured all over my body. They did not talk to me for months regardless of whoever was right. They even knocked me down with a car without any mercy. This happened to me for more than 10 years, not just days. While I felt lonely being pushed aside from my sisters for years, I have decided to take some hope in friendships and relationships, however nothing changed at all. Friends pushed me aside and ceased contact with me for ridiculous reasons. But I have met my girlfriend, no one has ever understood me of all the people I have ever known. Regardless  of everything, she never pushed me away and willingly went through every hardship with me. Unfortunately, on the day of Christmas in 2011, my girlfriend was stabbed twice at the back of her heart by 2 burglars and passed away before me. Without her, I am completely alone.

I asked god many times. Is it inevitable for me to accept such a fate? I once attempted  due to the extreme burden and pressure. But one thing came into my mind. The advices my girlfriend told me before she passed, I must keep in mind that this is not the end of the world. There are others, who suffer more than I do, for example, beggars, disabled persons and many more. I had to push on, in order to live.

To the people who are suffering, there is still hope for you. Look at me, being unable to change my the things that I wanted to change over the years, I did not give up. Now I trust what people told me, our parents are our own flesh and blood. They will love me regardless of their cruel treatment to me. One day, my parents changed greatly. From the monsters in my eyes to the angels sent from heaven, I lived happier than ever. I made extreme changes to myself to make many new friends from several places. I learnt that there is still hope for me. Every effort was not in vain. So what is your choice?
Chan Wai Mun