My Promise

By De Ming

Every year of my life, there would always be a time when I will sit down and recount to myself all that has happened. I would ask myself whether this year was better than the last. On most occasions, I would usually find that one precious year has gone by wasted and I would promise the same old New Year resolutions. That is until this year, for this year things are different. There are many reasons why this year was such a blessing to me, but in this story here, I would like to just focus on one of the prominent reason for this feeling of gratitude and contentment.

There was a boy who walked aimlessly along a dark narrow path, this path was overgrown with bushes and occasionally the boy had to suffer scratches just to walk along the path. At times the path split and the boy would anyhow decide the path he was to take. If one was to describe this boy, it would be someone who was lost and did not have a purpose or a reason in life. This boy would meet people along his path, but their road would leave his and soon he was walking alone once more. When he was sad, no one was there to comfort him, when he was happy, no one laughed along with him. But one day as the rain poured down on him and the cold made his bones shivered, a certain Someone walked into his path, unlike many of those people that came along his path, Someone bothered to stay with the boy as it poured down hard. This Someone sat by him and cheered him up till the rain stopped. When the dark clouds started to clear and the sun began to shine, Something happened to the boy, Something wonderful. The boy changed. He changed not from the outside, but from the inside. He walked a different road now, one that theis constantly bright and cheerful, his pace now fills with purpose. When he was sad, his tears were dried by Someone, when he was happy, he would share the joke to Someone. He was never alone, for Someone always stood by him.

The boy was me and Someone was a person named Xia Shuen. To be honest, I tried many ways to write out this essay and after a month I realized that my words were empty. Yet I did not give up, for I wanted to let her know how much she meant to me. At last, I decided to write it as it is. In the beginning, I tried to write how we were separated and we made a promise to meet each other after ten years. It was called "Our Promise". In reality that did not happen, therefore I could not place my feelings into the writing. So I have decided to just write it from my heart. I thought it would be called "By Her Side", but then "My Promise " fitted the topic better.

Life was a like a game of chess, at times we have to make sacrifices, we have to let one of our pieces to be eaten; we have let go of things although it may hurt. That happened to me, I lost something and I fought so hard to get it back. I failed to do so, but just when I lost hope, Xia Shuen sat by me and listened to me and that changed the world to me.

The first day our mouth spoke was a normal day, but the first day our hearts spoke was a special day, to me at least. She was upset about something and she shared with me one day. At that time it has been so long since anyone trusted me with anything important, so long since I was deemed worthy of such privileges, so long since I felt appreciated. It was then that I made a promise to myself that no matter what happened I would be by Xia Shuen’s side all the way, I would be her friend.

If you were to read any other stories about friendship, it would tell you about a few memorable or powerful experiences and memories that the author has spent with his/ her friend. But in reality, it is all those small and little things that just make the bond closer.

Next year, we might or might not be in the same class, but before that happens I want to let her know how much she meant to me. I want to let her know that she was the only one who was able to change my mood from utter blackness to joy, that she was the first person I cared so unselfishly for, that she was the person I felt most at ease with and that she was the first girl that had offered me a hug. She was special to me, really special. I just did not dare tell her, because it might sound stupid.

All in all, I just want to say thank you for picking me up from where I was. Thank you for listening to me all this time. Thank you for showing me that this person here is appreciated and is worth something. Thank you for all your help. Thank you for teaching me the true meaning of friendship. Thank you for making my life a brighter place. Thank you for asking me to be a prefect. Thank you for all those precious memories. Thank you for giving me another shot in life. Most of all thank you for just being there for me.

I make a promise today here as I did a year ago, that I Gan De Ming would be by you no matter what happens. If you were drowning, I would be there to pull you ashore, if you were falling from the sky, I would be your pillow, if your organs have any problems, and I’ll give you mine. I say this because I know you would do the same for me.