Champion- The abyss in my life

Name : ONG YIN SIN

No Matric : 212545

Title of Essay : The Abyss In My Life

It was in mid July, I finally came back home.

For most of my sixteen formative years, my father usually said very little to my mother and me. Talking to him was like talking to a stone wall. When I asked a question, he often gave a monosyllabic answer. Most of the time, he was away slogging and beavering feverishly outstation for months to eke out a living .My relationship with mother was closer. In fact, I could never be close to him. My simple image of him-idling and lolling in the armchair, reading his favourite novels voraciously, was a limited view, like a painting that only caught one dimension of the man.

I never knew him to be a genial and caring father. He showed his love more by his actions than his words, until one day when I experienced the abyss in my life.

Everything changed on June 16, 2005. It was the beginning of the June holidays, the time when everyone would unwind themselves from the never wrecking mounted up homework, given by my teachers in school. This spurred my friends and me to join a camping trip to Pedu Lake in Kedah after burning the midnight oil for the crucial examination. We thought it was the perfect time to let our hair down. However, my mother asked me to forget the thought of going obviously because she was worried of my safety.

“I will be fine, I’m seventeen and I can take care of myself!” I protested.

Nevertheless, she finally nodded her head after I pestered her for umpteen times. I had not bothered to ask permission from my father, as he was not at home as usual.

We arrived at the skirts of the mountain after a bumpy ride due to the bus driver’s rather reckless driving as he manoeuvred and negotiated the hairpin bends of the road. The sun appeared like a huge blazing ball of the fire in the sweltering afternoon. Our hiking adventure began as we ascended the steep gradient of the luxuriant forest, carrying bulky and cumbersome backpacks complete with our camping gears. Although our journey had just barely begun, the day was sweltering hot that it left my shirt clinging to my back, drenched and soaked in perspiration. My thought of this trip as a seemingly arduous journey soon ebbed and whittled away when I was mesmerized by the picturesque scenery in the middle of the idyllic forest. I basked in the beauty and solitude of Mother Nature which thrilled me beyond words could describe.

We reached Pedu Lake when dusk fell. The sun was spreading its golden rays towards the placid lake, morphing the crystal clear emerald water into colours of crimson and gold. The breathtaking view held us spellbound for several minutes. Never in my wildest dreams had I imagined I could see this magnificent creation of Mother Nature. We then split into two group , to set up a fire and make food cupboards and other gadgets not far from the lake. After pitching up our immaculate camp, wild rabbits which John had caught were roasted for dinner. The tranquility of the forest was pierced by peals of our laughter and shrieks of joy.

As darkness enveloped the forest, the distant horizon was punctuated by a dim moon, casting a meek metallic light on the forest ground, accompanied by clusters of twinkling stars. Everyone was chatting amicably and mingling exuberantly until we finally dozed off in our tents. It was then past midnight. I guessed we were too lost in our own paradise, until no one had realized the ominous turn in the weather, indicating nightmares to come.

“Fire! Fire! Wake up! There’s a forest fire! Wake up!”John yelled frantically.

Roused from my deep slumber, I was flabbergasted and bolted up on my cozy air mattress like a jack in the box. At the same time, I was trying to shake off the cobwebs of sleep. Outside, everyone was screaming hysterically and frenziedly. Scared out of my wits, I ran outside toward Debbie, my bosom friend, who was also sobbing fearfully. The sky was blood red, the air dense and smoky. Lightning continued to snake through the clouds and streaked down like fiery arrows accompanied by a series of thunder. As fate would have it, it had earlier struck one of the trees beside our camp, thus triggering a life.

Minutes later a gigantic plume of smoke mushroomed a hundred meters into the sky. The fire was spreading with deadly, unpredictable speed. Sensing imminent danger, I summoned up my courage and screamed.

“Andy, call 999! Get help!”

“Everyone, gather anything that floats. We’re going for the lake!”

“ Move! Now! Hurry!”

Everyone struggled and helped each other to carry our things towards the lake. Sticks and ash rained down our heads. I shuddered and felt a shiver inched up my spine, thinking doomsday was at hand.

Could we make it? Would we die in this inconspicuous corner of a dense equatorial forest?

I had a sudden fear that I would never be able to see father and mother again. I was trembling like a leaf at the thought of it. However, with an iron will, I stilled my tremulous hands. There was no time to hesitate at all.

High up, flames were leaping from treetop, hungrily consuming new foliage. Everyone heard the terrifying sound of the fire greedily and ferociously sucking in the air. We saw the sky turned a yellow-orange hue. Immediately a blast of heat was felt, and flying pebbles, dirt and debris pelted me in the face. An unearthly roar, like screaming jet engines assaulted my ears.

“It’s time to get out!”

“Go! Go! Go! Run for your lives!” Thomas yelled at the top of his lungs. His voice piercing though the air.

Everyone waded into the icy cold water without any hesitation. Some were struggling into life jackets while the others were clinging to flimsy mattresses and paddleboards. We frantically kicked towards the centre of the lake, where the water looked calmer. Unfortunately, the fire and wind created a vortex that sucked us back towards the edge of the lake. We had forgotten what lethargy felt like, as we were furiously kicking to reach the centre. Water flew from the lake’s surface, vacuumed up by the firestorm’s violent winds. All of us struggled to breathe, choking on water and acrid black smoke. Chunks of glowing red embers rained down on as. Our paradise was instantly transformed into a nightmarish firetrap.

Hidden by thick smoke, most of us began to drift apart. Frightened someone would drown, we grappled and struggled to keep one another in sight.

I did not know how much more I could take.

Jake kept grabbing Ryan, his younger brother, barely afloat in what looked like a life-jacket and he was repeatedly passing out from fatigue as the waves slammed into him. Debbie grabbed a juice container to keep afloat while Tomas clung on to a sinking box.

“Let go of it! Hold on to me!” Debbie shouted, afraid it would drown him. But, he stubbornly held tight.

I suddenly found it hard to breathe. Caught in the maelstrom, I found myself beginning to hyperventilate. My trepidation for an impending asthma attack rose in me like a toothache in its first growth. A chill of terror gripped me at that moment. I knew very well that an excessive inhalation of smoke would trigger an attack.

“Oh God, I forgot my inhaler.”I lamented.

“ Nicky , hold on! Take slow breath,” Brian, my boyfriend, pleaded, hoping to prevent a recurrence of an attack. I tried, but I was already panting and puffing so hard as my nostrils and lungs were filled with smoke. The fire continued to rage on. I could hear loud crackling of burning trees.

Suddenly, there was a loud thud. I felt something hard hitting me. It was not long before I realized that a snapped branch had hit me on my head. I touched my head. It was wet. Blood was oozing profusely and soon my face was drenched with it. The pain was excruciating. I went dizzy and felt the world around me spinning and spinning and spinning……

“Brian, help me! Don’t let me die here. Help me……” I murmured.

Then I could not remember anything, except the blanket of darkness that enshrouded and engulfed me.

I woke up with my head throbbing in pain to blinding fluorescent white lights, realizing that I was in the hospital. I saw Brian, widely awoke, sitting beside my bed. But who was holding my hands if he was sitting on my right? I then heard a familiar voice.

“Nicky? Thank god you’re alright.”

“Dad, is that you?” I then turned around.

“Welcome back, Nicky. Welcome back.” He heaved a sigh of relief. He held out his hands, embraced me warmly and then gently rocked me.

My mother told me that I was unconscious for 2 days and the doctor gave me a blood transfusion. When I was brought into the emergency room that day, the doctor in attendance told my parents that my life was hanging in the balance and I needed a blood transfusion as I had lost a massive amount of blood. At that moment, the hospital was running low on blood-type AB. Without dilly-dallying , my father willingly donated his blood although he was afraid of needles. So, it was my father who had given me back my life! No wonder he looked frail and a few years older.

I also learned that despite the high medical fees, my father transferred me to Island Hospital, a reputable private hospital in Penang, on receiving news of my condition. He wanted the best medical care for me no matter what it cost. Hearing this, I could not bring myself to talk. Instead, copious tears streamed down my checks and I was seized with sudden uncontrollable sobs.

“I just couldn’t lose you, honey,” he smiled warmly whenever I asked.

Although the camping adventure turned out to be ghastly and execrable, I was on cloud nine as I knew then that I had a special place in my father’s heart. Finally, I “found” him back. The special bond between father and daughter was undoubtedly sealed. After that incident, our relationship had never been better. Incredibly, it was sixteen years before I realized we even had the same hobbies. Every now and then, we would spend time together, sharing our views on the numerous novels that we had read, playing chess, going on vacation trip or simply, spending hours chit-chatting. It was really wonderful.

I was filled with remorse for my preconception of him.

Even now, whenever I think about the incident, tears well up in my eyes. Dad , I love you.