Its nearly 12.00 noon on the Sunday and I was here in front of my Laptop typing and listening to Michael Bubbley.Gosh my life is pathetic hehehe. I tried not to switch on my TV because when I do, then my concentration will be distracted and by the time I realize I am in front of my TV and realizing that I am a couch potato. I am those people who spend 60% of my life in front of my TV.
Last night I went out with a friend, an invitation that opened my eyes so immensely. I went out at around 8.00 pm yesterday after I got this SMS from a friend, asking me to come to his friends house for so a week end get together. I was at first reluctant to go, thinking that it would be awkward in the presence of unfamiliar faces, but I went anyway not because I do not have anything to do during the weekend ( memang pun) but because I took the time to invite me.
I arrived to their house at around 8.30 pm and I could hear from afar those cranky noises ( Those native karaoke songs) heheh no offence. When we reach there we were invited to sit with all people staring at me because I was the only non local around. It not that I haven’t in that situation because I did but the weird thing was that everyone was talking and laughing leaving me in awe because i couldn't understand a word.
Soon orang rumah serves the tapai and some local drinks to us, asking us to sip from on glasses. Gosh not that I have against drinking tuak but the thought of the same glasses shared around ahhhh.... Well I did drank a little sip just to pay my respect to the homeowner. The comes the second drink and I to lie and told them that I am allergic and runs rashes comes alcohol ( gosh that’s the same old alibi).. really guys i can't drink honest and I could hear some of the guys said “ Tak pandai minum… tak patut… sudah lama di Sarawak ” in a local slang, I know, not able to drink seems a lame excuse but honestly i guess i just do not have the taste bud for alcohol.
The thing that struck a cord to me sitting there was that everybody drank including some little young boys, I think they couldn’t be more than 12 , sipping and drinking Tuak as well as if it was just plain water. The funny thing was that it was an old person who serves him the drinks smilling and laughing everytime one of them makes this squirt after a sip. I was asking myself how could an old person does that, teaching and allowing the new generation making it okay to drink.
According to my friend they started drinking as young as 9 years old, and its was their parents who thought them to drink along with their relatives during special occasian and that perceive after that. Drinking was just like a normal get together or even a past time activities to them. Then my mind flew to when I was a child how my mother strongly told us that drinking is only for the adult ( 21 was our at par for adult ship in my mom’s dictionary). I remember my mum would only buy some liquor during Christmas for friends that came over but funny even when she was serving liquor to her friends and collogues we were not allow to even sip even a little bit. My mum was so strict to us on alcohol and cigarettes ( although she smokes and drinks a little bit) but for her children its taboo to even do it. There was this one time when my older cousin teaches us to smoke telling us that its one way to ease your hunger, and being 9 my brother was so incited took a puff , but when they ask me to smoke I refused because I know that it was wrong ( oh gosh I’m so a nerd). When we reach home my brother ask me to keep quiet about it, but being a small devil that I am hehehe. i told him that I wouldn’t tell if he would follow what I ask him to do( jahatnye kan). So then for the whole month my brother was my slave he he he. Being the small one in the family I am always the first person who would do all the house chores and my brother would get away with it every time but soon he was my house chores and that a pause a question to my mum and other siblings. Then after an interrogation from my mother, my brothers secrets were out, for the punishment my mum ask my brother to smoke a whole pact of cigarette continuously and i was so guilty looking at my brother begging and crying to my mum not to ever do it again.
Come back to the main topic… hehe jauh pulak aku berkhayal. Basically I think we are screwed up.. Malaysian are screwed up if we allow this to happen. As an adult it is our responsibilities to set boundaries to our children and not teaching them that its okay to drink. It is our social duties to tell this kids that its not okay to drink and let the drinking comes after you are an adult and only during festive or special occasion. Drinking is okay but only when it is just for social gestures and not to get drunk. Drinking, drunk driving could end up killing people and in some occasion drinking could end up a girl being pregnant. I don’t know but we have to do something about this, because I can see that drinking is a normal fare to all the local people in Sabah and Sarawak. This have to end and we have to take responsibilities to teach our younger generation, so that the new generation wouldn’t stray in alcoholism.
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