My Unforgettable Memory
Memories play an important role in our lives. Some memories bring joy in our lives and some of them teach us lessons. Everyone would have a memory that would be imprinted in their mind forever and the same goes to Tiffany.
Tiffany is a 17 year old girl who rarely talks to anyone in class but extremely close to her friends. She is considered to be very matured for her age because of her way of thinking. To her, life would always be a part of her memory because in this life, she realises who she is and her purpose in this world. She also sees people as actors who are just filming their nameless movies, waiting to see if they become a hit or a flop.
So, what is her unforgettable memory? It was the death of her father, Mr. Keith Andrews. They were like the best of friends and would help each other out when they were down. They even had so many similarities such as their blood type, hobby, favourite colour etc. Tiffany had planned that after she had a job, she was going to take care of her father when he became old. But her dream shattered when her father was diagnosed with stomach cancer.
It was a shocking news to Tiffany as she had just returned from her public speaking competition. Her father had always been active. He ate the same food as she and her family had. But why did he had cancer? But she stayed strong and went to school with a smile on her face. She has to visit her father in the hospital every day that she didn't have enough time to finish her homework. Everyone pitied her but that was not what she wanted. But she kept quiet, hoping her father would be well soon.
Months had passed and during the new moon on 9 September 2018, her father's condition got even worse. His eyes turned yellow as his liver was failing, his face was pale as there was too little blood in him. They were the signs that he would leave the mortal world but Tiffany tried being strong to see her father healthy again. He was sent to the hospital on an ambulance the next day because he was out of breath. At about 4.30 pm, Mr. Keith Andrews breathed his last. Her mother and sister were crying, so were her aunts, uncles and cousins. A noble soul has just left his family behind for a new journey. But Tiffany just stood there, with a blank look in her face, because she knew she could do nothing about it.
Preparations for the funeral were done immediately. On that day, she had never expected her friends to visit her to send their condolences. When her father's body arrived to the house, her friends began crying and Tiffany was comforting them. When it was time to take the body to the crematorium, that was when the tears started streaming down Tiffany's cheeks. She would not be able to see her first hero anymore.
The neat day, she went to school. Everyone was shocked because they has presumed that she would only come after a week. She had been smiling and laughing with her friends but she still felt lonely. Her life was no more colourful. Whenever she closed her eyes, she saw her father. She thought that she was going to fall into depression forever.
That fact changed when her sister, Lisa was showing her a few music videos by Queen. Tiffany has heard of the band but has only listened to two of their songs ( we will rock you, we are the champions ). She saw the music videos of Bohemian Rhapsody, Killer Queen etc. But she decided to listen to The Show Must Go On. That song really changed her at the moment as she was moved by the lines (inside my heart is breaking, my make up may be flaking, but my smile still stays on ) and (I'll face it with a grin, I'm never giving in ). She began realising that she had a choice to stay miserable forever or to push that incident aside and move on.
She reduced grieving for her father and continued enjoying the days of her life. As what Maya Angelou has said, *life is not measured by the number of breaths that we take but by the moments that take our breath away*. Tiffany realised that she should appreciate the process of life that she is living in. She had to make her nameless film a big hit.
After that day, she was her old self again. Although she misses her father, she would always feel his presence by her. Many people have saluted her for her strength but she remained humble. In her point of view, anyone can be as strong or stronger than her.
If Tiffany could speak in front of anyone, she would say that it is okay to have a bad memory because everybody wants happiness, nobody wants pain, but you can't have a rainbow without a little rain. Some people have problems creating memories for themselves or loved ones but are afraid that others would judge them. This context is so similar to a Japanese saying. The Japanese believe that a human being has three faces. Yes, not one, but three faces. The first face is the one you show to the world. The second face is the face you show your family and friends and the third face the the one you show to yourself. Your third face is the true reflection of yourself but no one sees it.
We are meant to be ourselves. Stop hiding or changing ourselves for others. Get out there and show everyone who we are.
#This is inspired by a true story