The Best Christmas Tree
December 12, 2009 Leave a comment
Beauty certainly lies in the Eyes of the Beholder. 3 weeks ago, Felicia and Elkan took part in his school’s Christmas Tree Competition. The creation must be a joint-effort between child-&-parents. Well, my mum-&-son tag team won the Overall Special Award of all categories. (My son broke all my previous records – this is already his 3rd creative awards!) I guess Felicia played a big role in deciding the design. Afterall, she beat me to win the 1st prize 20 years ago when we both took part in our Secondary School "Best Candle Design". In the end, I got 2nd place – surely I was feeling so sour then.
I was working in Macau when Felicia sent me the good news. The next day, I went to school and saw the prized entry. Elkan is certainly popular in his school and he is enjoying his 3-minute fame. From principal to janitor, everyone adores so dearly.
Yesterday when Felicia was picking up Elkan, she overheard some conversations between parents on the awards. In cantonese they said "What so special about the top winner? It is not attractive and so easy to do. Just a pile of crashed paper balls."
I was laughing when Felicia told me about those comments. Afterall, I do agree other entries look very creative indeed. Even Elkan felt the same when his teacher congratulated hm on his big win. Elkan said "Huh? You mean I won? But I don’t like my Chrismas Tree leh. I like Wenlan’s!"
In fact, if I am the panel of judges, I would have trouble awarding the top prize. There were many great entries. Nope, we didn’t bribe the school with any big donation nor any of my friends is sitting in the panel of judges. Both Felicia and I thought the "green concept" of our creation won the hearts of the judges.
This competition is more than just creativity and beauty. It is not just the creation of an art work but the building of bonds and stronger kinship. What I saw wasn’t just the 50 over entries. What I saw was 50 happy moments. It is competition like this draws the parents and child closer. Certainly, winning the top award is big bonus (of encouragement and motivation) for the family. Nevertheless, to me, every entry is a winning moment between the child and his/her parents. Picture the precious happy moment the parents spent with their kids, building their very own unique Christmas Tree. Now, that is indeed touching and heart warming. On that last note, when was the last time we spent time working together with our parents?
Surely, beauty lies in the Eyes of the Beholder. But creating happy moments of togetherness like these is simply beautiful and very very rewarding.
12 years away from home - Singapore. Writing my stories here for my lovely mum & dad, friends and most importantly, for my wife & son back home. A self-confessed gadget freak, a spontaneous prankster on the outside and a warm loving heart inside. Enjoying a happy life with loving families, friends plus a dream job. Realising mum’s motto – “Exceed Yourself Every Day”. Always believing that “Simplicity is Beauty”.
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