dinner with the boys

We hosted a charity break fast with an orphanage from Kota Belud last night. After the whole annoying and frustrating episode "Hey Coordinator, why don’t you know how to do it", the whole night went well. Personally I think the children could enjoy themselves more if these people put some thought into their plan.

Anyway, when they arrived and got down from the bus, we were surprised to see all of them were boys. Hee. An information they (our hotel organizing team) forgot to tell us. It was embarrassing especially when one of us asked one of the boys where are all the girls. *LOL* Why didn’t she figure it out?

They looked as if someone had forced them to attend the function. Hee. The younger ones looked tired and sleepy from the 11/2-hour journey they took to get to the hotel. My boss and I sitting on the same table tried breaking the ice by asking them questions but most of them looked at us like we had just lost our mind. I bet some of them wish they were in a different table. I then tried the make-a-joke approach. Apparently, it only works on certain people. But I am so not going to give up. Hey, kids love me. I got a reputation to look after.

Me: Jangan takut bah. Saya tidak makan orang / Don’t worry I don’t eat small children.
Boy: …
Me: Kau lapar sudah?
Boy: …
Me to my boss: Err, no response from this one.
Me: Berapa umur kau? /How old are you?
Boy: …
Me: Bah, tidak apa lah. Nanti ko minum ni air bandung, tidak pandai berhenti kau bercakap nanti. Jaga. Habislah kau nanti bercakap saja. Saya tidak mau layan oh / It’s okay but once you drink the syrup, you won’t be able to stop talking and by then I am not going to talk to you.
Boy: (He gave me a half a smile)

Oh well, it was a good sign. I am also proud to say that our table is the most loud and fun table. We laughed and talked and other kids from other tables were looking at us wishing they were with us instead. I am pretty sure of that. Hee.

Two eight year olds captured my heart last night. Iqmal & Hafiz. Though they were shy and you could hardly hear them mumbling at first, but towards the end of the night, their true energetic and cheeky personality begin to show. It’s a shame they had to leave already by then.

I realized/learned that there are so many things in life I take for granted. Broccoli - these kids never seen/hear or tasted broccoli before. Brown sugar – One boy don’t understand why after three packets of brown sugar the coffee is still bitter and they were fascinated with the color when my boss pour it onto a plate for them to see. Chicken broth – Ikmal loves it so much, he had three bowls and left his main dish untouched. Desserts – I bet this is their favorite part of the menu. They were drooling over the chocolate cakes and the mini grape muffin thingy and kept stuffing their already full mouth until the entire desert disappeared.

They entertained us more than we entertained them. I pray that each of them will lead a good life. Though I may never see them again, I will always remember them as the boys who thought we dyed the cauliflower green.