almost two months into working life sees me gradually starting to develop a routine. which is good! i love routines. my god have i aged.
and then sometimes i get days like today where everything is sort of, wack. not necessarily Vine-wack if you know what i mean, but more of a bizarre-wack.
this morning i drove to KL High Court at 10AM. i was in the public carpark and as i neared the end of the road, i started turning right in search of empty spots, except there was one problem: there was a car parked by the curb and it was parked quite a distance away from it. my first turning attempt saw me extremely anxious watching the proximity between both cars increase. so i stopped, reverse, and then turned to the left a bit to gain more space between us so that i could finish my right turn safely.
but i barely even completed that thought before i felt my whole car lurch downward and there was a heart-sinkingly loud thonk and i knew i was fucked.
i’d driven down into a rather large drain and had one tyre stuck in it, and all my frantic reversing did nothing at all.
so i got out, a million thoughts racing through my head, all of them ending with what do i do what do i do. some people stopped their cars and came over to help and at first, two strangers stopped to help lift up my car as i put my car in reverse, but to no avail. the tyre and sunk into the drain too deep. i was honestly quite panicky but i knew in that moment, i couldn’t afford to panic. i called the lawyer i was following to court to tell him i’d be late, and then thought i’d try my luck asking the security guards of the carpark to chance any help i could get. and then i remembered that a pupil at my firm had recently gotten into a car accident and had firstly contacted the car insurance company for towing help. after a few different calls, i finally got my car insurance company right (lol – i was learning a lot of things this morning).
right as i hung up however, another car stopped and the guy that came out convinced me that it was possible to get it out with the help of a few more people. and sure enough, a few more people passers-by stopped to help. and this time, it worked. with the generous help of a few strangers, my car was free.
i couldn’t stop saying thank you to the kind souls who, without hesitation, had stopped to help me without asking for anything in return. my heart was swelling with immense gratitude. these people didn’t know me, owed me nothing, and yet their one simple gesture (maybe not so simple. i mean, what’s simple about lifting a car with your bare hands) had really saved my day. i still believe in the inherent goodness of us malaysians, of us humans.
getting back in my car, i felt like i could almost cry. so i allowed myself that moment of respite for five seconds before parking and heading for court. i remember looking back at my backseat and seeing my gift for my secret santa sitting comfortably there, like it had no idea what had just happened.
after the hearing, i drove back to the office. and then it was time for the firm’s christmas party.
the party started with ciders and beers passed around as all 20 or so of us gathered at the “living room” of the office, fried chicken and cakes and salads arranged neatly on the table. Sher Rynn and i did some last minute wall deco, to some of the staffs’ amusement.
and then it was time for the opening act. it was us. we were the opening act.
the night before, Joshua, Sher Rynn and i had stayed back till 1AM drafting…improvised lyrics to 12 days of christmas, tailored to include members of the firm. it was a gruelling three hours punctuated with episodes of two extremes: guys this is great we are on FIRE and what is this i’d rather do translations please end us
our 3-minute long TT rendition of the christmas carol was surprisingly met with very positive responses and passionate laughter, even though it was technically a lowkey roast session of everyone in the firm. but it made me really happy to see how well-received the efforts of our previous night were, and all three of us collectively concurred that all that was super worth it.
and then we exchanged presents for secret santa and i was a bit apprehensive when i found out i was gifted a durian flower perfume, but it turned out to be very nice. just like the whole christmas party, and by extension, pretty much the whole day. very, very nice.
as i am slowly adapting and blending into employed adulthood, every little happiness counts. and i am thankful for days where little happiness-es accumulate into a big happiness that constantly serves as a reminder of how bright the days can be when it’s dark and gloomy all around.
michelle teoh 