What the Modern Woman Wants

7/31/2019 What the Modern Woman Wants

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What the Modern Woman Wants

By Amanda Chong Wei-Zhen

The old woman sat in the backseat of the magenta convertible as it careened down the

highway, clutching tightly to the plastic bag on her lap, afraid it may be kidnapped by the wind. She was not used to

such speed, with trembling hands she pulled the seat belt tighter but was careful not to touch the patent leather seats

with her callused fingers, her daughter had warned her not to dirty it, Fingerprints show very clearly on white, Ma.

Her daughter, Bee Choo, was driving and talking on her sleek silver mobile phone using big words the old woman

could barely understand. Finance, Liquidation, Assets, Investments Her voice was crisp and important and hadan unfamiliar lilt to it.

Her Bee Choo sounded like one of those foreign girls on television. She was speaking in an American accent.

The old lady clucked her tongue in disapproval.. I absolutely cannot have this.. We have to sell! Her daughterexclaimed agitatedly as she stepped on the accelerator; her perfectly manicured fingernails gripping onto the steering

wheel in irritation.

I cant DEAL with this anymore! she yelled as she clicked the phone shut and hurled it angrily toward the backseat.The mobile phone hit the old woman on the forehead and nestled soundlessly into her lap. She calmly picked it up

and handed it to her daughter.

Sorry, Ma, she said, losing the American pretence and switching to Mandarin. I have a big client in America . Therehave been a lot of problems.

The old lady nodded knowingly. Her daughter was big and important.

Bee Choo stared at her mother from the rear view window, wondering what she was thinking. Her mothers wrinkledcountenance always carried the same cryptic look. The phone began to ring again, an artificially cheerful digital tune,

which broke the awkward silence.

Hello, Beatrice! Yes, this is Elaine. Elaine. The old woman cringed. I didnt name her Elaine. She remembered herdaughter telling her, how an English name was very important for networking, Chinese ones being easily forgotten.

Oh no, I cant see you for lunch today. I have to take the ancient relic to the temple for her weird daily prayer ritual.

Ancient Relic. The old woman understood perfectly it was referring to her. Her daughter always assumed that her

mothers silence meant she did not comprehend.

Yes, I know! My car seats will be reeking of joss sticks! The old woman pursed her lips tightly, her hands gripping

her plastic bag in defence.

The car curved smoothly into the temple courtyard. It looked almost garish next to the dull sheen of the ageing

temples roof. The old woman got out of the back seat, and made her unhurried way to the main hall. Her daughter


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stepped out of the car in her business suit and stilettos and reapplied her lipstick as she made her brisk way to her

mothers side.

Ma, Ill wait outside. I have an important phone call to make, she said, not bothering to hide her disgust at thepungent fumes of incense.. The old lady hobbled into the temple hall and lit a joss stick, she knelt down solemnly and

whispered her now familiar daily prayer to the Gods. Thank you God of the Sky, you have given my daughter luck all

these years. Everything I prayed for, you have given her.

She has everything a young woman in this world could possibly want. She has a big house with a swimming pool, a

maid to help her, as she is too clumsy to sew or cook.. Her love life has been blessed; she is engaged to a rich and

handsome angmoh man. Her company is now the top financial firm and even men listen to what she says.. She lives

the perfect life. You have given her everything except happiness. I ask that the gods be merciful to her even if she

has lost her roots while reaping the harvest of success.

What you see is not true, she is a filial daughter to me. She gives me a room in her big house and provides well for

me. She is rude to me only because I affect her happiness.. A young woman does not want to be hindered by her old

mother. It is my fault.

The old lady prayed so hard that tears welled up in her eyes. Finally, with her head bowed in reverence she planted

the half-burnt joss stick into an urn of smoldering ashes.

She bowed once more. The old woman had been praying for her daughter for thirty-two years. When her stomach

was round like a melon, she came to the temple and prayed that it was a son. Then the time was ripe and the baby

slipped out of her womb, bawling and adorable with fat thighs and pink cheeks, but unmistakably, a girl. Her husband

had ticked and punched her for producing a useless baby who could not work or carry the family name.

Still, the woman returned to the temple with her new-born girl tied to her waist in a sarong and prayed that her

daughter would grow up and have everything she ever wanted.

Her husband left her and she prayed that her daughter would never have to depend on a man. She prayed every day

that her daughter would be a great woman, the woman that she, meek and uneducated, could never become. A

woman with nengkan; the ability to do anything she set her mind to. A woman who commanded respect in the hearts

of men. When she opened her mouth to speak, precious pearls would fall out and men would listen. She will not be

like me, the woman prayed as she watched her daughter grow up and drift away from her, speaking a language she

scarcely understood.

She watched her daughter transform from a quiet girl to one who openly defied her, calling her laotu, old fashioned.She wanted her mother to be modern, a word so new there was no Chinese word for it. Now her daughter was tooclever for her and the old woman wondered why she had prayed like that. The Gods had been faithful to her

persistent

prayer, but the wealth and success that poured forth so richly had buried the girls roots and now she stood facelesswith no identity, bound to the soil of her ancestors by only a string of origami banknotes.

Her daughter had forgotten her mothers value. Her wants were so ephemeral, that of a modern woman. Power,

wealth, access to the best fashion boutiques and yet her daughter had not found true happiness. The old womanknew that you could find happiness with much less. When her daughter left the earth, everything she had would

count for


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nothing. People would look to her legacy and say that she was a great woman but she would be forgotten once the

wind blows over, like the ashes of burnt paper convertibles and mansions.

The old woman wished she could go back and erase all her big hopes and prayers for her daughter now that she had

looked out of the temple gates. She saw her daughter speaking on the phone, her brow furrowed with anger and

worry. Being at the top is not good, the woman thought, there is only one way to go from there down.

The old woman carefully unfolded the plastic bag and spread out a packet of beehoon in front of the altar. Her

daughter often mocked her for worshipping porcelain Gods. How could she pray to them so faithfully and expect

pieces of ceramic to fly to her aid? But her daughter had her own gods too, idols of wealth, success and power that

she enslaved to and worshipped every day of her life.

Every day was a quest for the idols, and the idols she worshipped counted for nothing in eternity. All the wants her

daughter had would slowly suck the life out of her and leave her, an empty souless shell at the altar. The old woman

watched the joss stick. The dull heat had left a teetering grey stem that was on the danger of collapsing.

Modern woman nowadays, the old lady signed in resignation, as she bowed to the east bone final time to end herritual. Modern woman nowadays want so much that they lose their souls and wonder whey they cannot find it.

Her joss stick disintegrated into a soft grey powder. She met her daughter outside the temple, the same look of worry

and frustration was etched on her daughters face.

An empty expression, as if she was ploughing through the soil of her wants looking for the one thing that would sown

the seeds of happiness. They climbed into the convertible in silence and her daughter drove along the highway, this

time not to fast as she had done before. Ma, Bee Choo finally said. I dont know how to put this. Mark and I havebeen talking about it and we plan to move out of the big house. The property market is good now, and we managed

to get a buyer willing to pay us seven mil lion for it. We decided wed prefer a cosier penthouse apartment instead. Wefound a perfect one in Orchard Road . Once we move into our apartment, we plan to get rid of the maid, so we can

have more space to ourselves.

The old woman nodded knowingly. Bee Choo swallowed hard. Wed get someone to come in to do the houseworkand we can eat outbut once the maid is gone, there wont be anyone to look after you. You will be awfully lonely athome and, besides that the apartment is rather small. There wont be space. We thought about it for a long time, andwe decided the best thing for you is if you moved to a Home. Theres one near Hougang its a Christian home and avery nice one.

The old woman did not raise an eyebrow. Ive been there, the matron is willing to take you in. Its beautiful withgardens and lots of old people to keep you company! Hardly have time for you, youd be happier there. Youd behappier there, really. her daughter repeated as if to affirm herself.

This time the old woman had no plastic bag of food offering to cling tightly to, she bit her lip and fastened her seat

belt, as if it would protect her from a daughter who did not want her anymore. She sunk deep into the leather seat,

letting her shoulders sag and her fingers trace the white seat.

Ma, her daughter asked, searching the rear view window for her mother. Is everything okay?

What had to be done, had to be done. Yes she said firmly, louder than she intended, if it will make you happy, sheadded more quietly.


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Its for you, Ma! You will be happier there. You can move there tomorrow, I already got the maid to pack your things.Elaine said triumphantly, mentally ticking yet another item off her agenda. I knew everything would be fine. Elainesmiled widely; she felt liberated. Perhaps getting rid of her mother would make her happier. She had thought about it.

It seemed the only hindrance in her pursuit of happiness. She was happy now. She had everything a modern woman

ever wanted; money, status, career, love, power and now freedom without her mother and her old-fashioned ways to

weigh her down

Yes she was free. Her phone butted urgently, she picked it up and read the message, still beaming from ear to ear.Stock 10% increase. Yes, things were definitely beginning to look up for her and while searching for the meaning oflife in the luminance of her hand phone screen, the old woman in the backseat became invisible and she did not see

her in tears.

C Gi i Tm Hnh Phc | What the Modern WomanWants25.07.2011 L Minh Hng

2 Votes

Amanda Chong Wei Zhen

Dch gi: Trang Anh

.

Vi dng v tc gi:AMANDA CHONG WEIZHEN 15 tui. C b ngi Singapore ca Trng n sinh Raffles

ni ln thnh mt hin tng trong lng vn chng ca o quc ny. C va ot gii thng cao nht trong cuc

thi vit truyn ngn (bng ting Anh) ca Khi cng ng Anh sau khi vt qua hn 5.300 truyn ngn d thi t 52quc gia trong khi. Truyn ngn C gi i tm hnh phc ni v s mu thun th h v mu thun gi tr trong mt

t nc Singapore ang chuyn i nhanh chng thnh mt quc gia pht trin. (Xin c nhc li, tc gi truyn

ngn ny ch mi 15 tui).

.

B c ngi bng sau chic xe mui trn ang bng bng trn xa l, gh cht bch nilng trn o nh s mt cn gin cum mt. B khng quen vi tc cao nh th.

Cnh tay run run sit li chic dy an ton, song b vn lu khng cc ngn tay sn si chm vo chic gh da

bng long.

Con gi b dn b ng lm bn gh: M , trn nn mu trng du tay coi l liu lm .


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Con gi ca b, Bee Choo, va li xe va tun vo chic in thoi di ng mu bc mnh mai nhng t ng to ttm mt b c gi gii lm cng ch hiu c l m: ti chnh, thanh ton, ti sn, u t. Ging ni ca c anh, trm v nghe l l.

Bee Choo ca b n ni c nh cc c gi nc ngoi trn truyn hnh. N ni bng ging M c y. B c tc li,v pht .

Ti dt khot khng ly. Bn quch n i! con gi b gin d tht ln, chn nhn ga tng tc. Nhng mng tayct ta hon ho bn chn bu cht vo tay li.

Khng giao dch g ht! c qut ln, tt my di ng ri gin d qung n ra bng sau.

Chic in thoi p trng trn b c ri trt xung vt o.

B c lng l nht ln, cha tr cho con gi. Con xin li m c ta ni, b hn ging M, chuyn sang ging QuanThoi con c mt khch hng ln M. C nhiu chuyn ln xn lm. B c gt u v am hiu.

Con gi b lm n ln v rt quan trng. Bee Choo nhn m qua knh chiu hu, t hi khngbit b c ang ngh g.

B mt nhn nheo ca m c lun mang ci v kh hiu no .

Chung in thoi li reo. Mt m thanh nhn to vui nhn kiu k thut s lm v tan s im lng nng tru.

- Beatrice h! ng ri, Elaine y. Elaine.

B c nhn mt. Mnh t tn n l Elaine hi no u? B sc nh con gi b c ni rng mt ci tn Anh l rtquan trng cho vic ho mng, tn Trung Quc ngi ta hay qun lm.

- , tra nay tui gp b khng c u. Tui phi a b ct i cha lm my ci th tc l bi lm cm ca b.

B ct. B c hiu r lm ch, y l ni v b. Con gi b c tng rng b khng ni ra th c ngha l b khnghiu g.

- , bit ri! m xe tui s lm y tn nhang ch g?

B c dn mt vo cp mi c con gi, tay b bu ly bch nilng y v phng th. Chic xe m r vo sn cha.Trng n c phn lo lot bn sc thi nht nht ca nc cha c knh. B c bc ra khi bng sau, th nhng bc

khng vi v v pha chnh in. Con gi b cng bc ra khi xe trong b y phc doanh nhn v giy cao gt. Cro bc theo m, va qut li son mi.

- M, con i bn ngoi nh. Con phi gi in thoi, c chuyn quan trng lm c ni, chng bun che giu sgh tm mi khi nhang. B c rn rn bc vo cha, chm nn nhang. B cung knh qu xung, lm nhm nhngli cu nguyn hng ngy m gi y b thuc lu lu.

- T n Tri Pht ph h tr cho con gi con my nm qua. Con cu xin g n cng u c toi nguyn. Tr nhn m c mi th trn i. N c mt cnnh ln vi c b bi, cn c c ngi gip vic na v n hayvng v lm, chng khu v, cm nc g c c. Chuyn tnh duyn ca n cng sng sa na. N ang yu mt

ang moh (phng ng, ch ngi Kavkaz) giu c v p trai lm. Cng ty ca n nay l cng ty ti chnh hng u.Ngay n m n ng cng phi tun lnh n. N ang sng mt cuc i hon ho. Tri Pht ban cho n mith, ch thiu c mi hnh phc m thi. Con cu xin Tri Pht tha th cho n d n c hi mt gc do mi mchy theo cng danh.iu Ngi trng thy khng ng cht no u. N rt c hiu vi con. N cho con mt cn


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phng trong ngi nh ln ca n. N cng chu cp y cho con. N hi hn vi con l v con lm nh hng nhnh phc ca n. Ph n tr khngmun b m gi quy ry. l do li ca con m ra.

B c cu nguyn thnh khn n mc nc mt b a ra. Cui cng, b ci u ly ri cm nn nhang chy phnna vo chic l cha y tn. B ci ly thm mt ln na.

B c cu nguyn cho con gi sut 32 nm nay ri. Khi bng b trn ln nh tri da, b n cha cu xin mt

a con trai. Ri khi ngy sinh n, a b trt ra khi bng ca b. N khc r ln trng tht ng yu vi nhngbp chn b b, i m hng ho, nhng l mt b gi, khng lm ln vo u c na ri. Chng b vo b,m b v b sinh ra mt a b v dng, khng th lm vic cng nh bo tn dng h. Th ri ngi ph nvn c tr li cha cng vi b gi mi sinh bc trong chic x rng eo trc ngc. B cu nguyn cho con gi bln ln s c mi th m n mun.

Chng b b b v b cu nguyn cho con b v sau s chng bao gi phi l thuc vo n ng. Mi ngy bcu nguyn cho con b tr thnh mt ph n tuyt vi, mt ph n m chnh b khng bao gi vn ti c do qunhu m v t hc. Mt ph n nengkan, tc c kh nng lm tt c nhng th g mnh d nh. Mt ph n p t sngng m vo tn tri tim ca mi ngi n ng. Khi con b m ming ni, trn chu s tun ra theo, v n ng

s philng nghe n. N s khng ging nh mnh, b c va cu nguyn va m ui ngm c con gi ang ngymt ln ln v tch xa khi b, thng ni bng mt th ngn ng m b kh khn lm mi hiu ni. B ngm nghacon gi ca b chuyn t mt b gi ngoanngon thnh mt c gi cng khai thch thc b, gi b l laotu (c h).N mun m n phi hin i, mt t qu mi khng c trong ting Hoa.

Gi th con gi b tr nn qu thng minh i vi b v b c t hi c sao b li cu xin nh th. Tri Pht lun d di trc nhng li cu xin dai dng ca b nhng ca ci v cng danh chy vo nh nc chn i c cingun ca c gi, v gi y c ang ng khng khun mt, khng bn sc, ch cn dnh vo mnh t ca ttin bng mt si ch mong manh. Con gi b qun mt cc gi tr ca ngi m. Nhng iu n mun tht qusc ph du Nhng c mun ca ph n hin i. Quyn lc, ca ci, cc ca hng thi trang cao cp Th m

con gi b vn cha th tm thy c hnh phc thc th. B c bit rng khng cn c nhiu th nh th ngi tavn tm c hnh phc. Khi con gi b t gi ci i, tt c nhng th m n c s chng cn l g na. Ngi ta snhn li nhng thnh tch ca n v ni rng n l mt ph n tm c nhng ri n s b qun lng khi cn gi utin la qua ging nh tro tn cn li ca nhng chic xe mui trn v bit th bng hng m.

B c mong sao n s quay u li. B mong sao c th xo i tt c nhng hoi vng ln lao ca mnh v nhng licu nguyn dnh cho n. Gi y b ch cn mi mt c nguyn: lm sao cho con gi b c hnh phc. B nhnra cng cha. B thy con gi b ang ni chuyn in thoi, chn my n nhu li v gin d v lo lng. Trn nhcao cng chng phi tt lnh g, b c thm ngh. Ttrn nh th ch c mt con ng i: i xung.

B c t mn tho bch nilng ri ra trc b th mt bch bee hoon (m bt go). Con gi b thng ch nho bchuyn cng bi cc v Pht bng s. Sao b c th khn vi thnh khn nh th v ch i nhng mnh s y bayn gip ? Nhng bn thn con gi ca b cng c nhng v thn ca n: nhng thn tng ca giu sang, thnht v quyn lc m n l thuc v th cng mi ngy trong cuc i. Mi ngy l mt s truy tm cc thn tng,v nhng thn tng m n tn th li chng l g c so vi vnh hng. Tt c nhng th m con gi b mong c sdn dn ht ly s sng bn trong n, b li cho b mt chic v s v hn v rng tuch trc b th. B c lngngm nhng que nhang. Hi nng bc ln nhng x ct p p c nguy c sp bt c giy pht no. Ph n hini ngy nay, b c th di nhn nhc khi ci ly ln cui cng v hng ng kt thc bui cu nguyn. Ph nhin i ngy nay mun qu nhiu th n mc nh mt c linh hn ri li t hi ti sao mnh khng tm c n.Que nhang ca b tan ra thnh lp tro xm mn.

B gp li con gi ngoi cng cha. V bn chn, tht vng vn nguyn vn trn khun mt n. Mt biu l rngtuch, c nh n ang o xi mnh t ca nhng thm mun tm kim ht mm ca hnh phc. Hai m conlng lng leo ln chic xe mui trn, ri c gi a xe ra xa l, ln ny khng phng nhanh nh lc n.


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- M Bee Choo m li con khng bit ni sao vi m y. Mark v con bn chuyn ny ri, ti con nh bnnh ln. Th trng nh t ang c n thnh th ti con mun kim ngi bn nh, c 7 triu (la Singapore ND) l c. Ti con nh kim mt cn h khang trang no . C mt cn ph Orchard hp con lm. Khi no v, ti con s chocon b lm ngh vic c ch rng ri hn B c gt g v am hiu. Bee Choo kh nhc nutnc ming.

- Ti con s mn ngi ti dn dp v n ung ngoi, th l n. Nhng con b lm ngh ri th khng c ai chm

sc m. M nh mt mnh chc l bun d lm. Vi li cn h cng cht chi na. Ti con suy ngh chuyn nylu lm ri. Ti con ngh tt nht l m n sng ch mi. C mt cn nh gn Hougang, mt cn nh ca Gio hiCng gio. Nh ny tt lm, m .

B c khng h ngc mt. Con n ri. B qun l ni b sn sng nhn m. Nh ny va p va c vntc, li c c ng ngi gi lm bn vi m! Con u c nhiu thi gian gn gi m, th no m cngvui hn. m vui hn tht m, c gi lp li nh khng nh vi chnh mnh. Ln ny b c khng cn bchnilng ng thc phm no m gh cht trn o na ri. B bm mi sit li dy an ton, c nh n bo v cb trc c con gi ang mun tng kh b i.

B ngi ngp vo trong chic gh da, mc cho i vai thng xung v cc ngn tay in du trn lp bc gh trngmut.

- M?con gi b ct ting gi, tm kim b qua chic knh chiu hu M n khng vy m? iu g phi n n.

- n m b c ni chc nch, ging b ln hn b d nh nu iu lm con hnh phc b h ging ni thm.

-Vic ny l cho m c m, m! m s hnh phc hn. Mai m n nh! Con biu con b lm gi ghm c cho m ri Elaine phn khi ni, cha g m u c hng n mt mc mi trong lch trnh ca c.

Con bit mi chuyn s n thi m.

Elaine tot ming ci, c cm gic nh va c gii thot. C th vic tng kh b m s gip c hnh phc hn.C tng ngh n iu . Hnh nh b c l chng ngi duy nht trn con ng truy tmhnh phc ca c. Gith c thy sung sng lm. C c mi th m bt k ngi ph n hin i no cng thm mun: tin ti, a v,cng danh, tnh yu, quyn lc v by gi l t do, khng c b m v khng c nhng l thi c h khin c blun kh chu. Phi, c t do! Chic in thoi reo ln, khn trng. C nhc n ln v c mu tin nhn. Thtrng chng khon tng 10%!. Tuyt! Vi c, r rng l mi vic ang bt u i ln V trong khi c tm kim ngha ca cuc i qua nh sng chic mn nh in thoi, b c ngi bng sau tr nn v hnh, v c khng th trng thy nhng git nc mt ca b.

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What the Modern Woman Wants