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The biggest lessons I learned as a teen

Written by Abel Cheng

Wednesday, 20 June 2007

I didn’t plan to write this but Char’s Weary Parent Group Writing Project prompted me with the idea of writing something significant that I’ve learned when I was a teen.

Writing about this topic gives me the opportunity to look back and remind myself what I went through. So that I can appreciate more what I have now and refocus on what matters most.

My life as a teen was a turbulent one. Also, it was the lowest moment of my life. Nothing could be worse than that.

That happened when my father was ill. Mind you, it’s not a sickness that could be cured within days. My dad was lying in the bed for about a year.

Because of my dad being the breadwinner of the family, our income suddenly stopped. We could depend on our savings but with the meager salary my dad made, the funds were running low very fast. Imagine the life of no income for 12 months and my mom had 4 children to feed.

It’s not easy for the whole family. Being the eldest in the family, I had to work part time in a nearby factory after school. Not much but at least enough to help lessen my mom’s burden and cover my own expenses.

I was not as lucky as my friends who didn’t have to work like I did.

But I was fortunate in the sense that I learned the meaning of being tough in the face of adversity.

I learned the importance of money and the lack of it.

I learned the meaning of unconditional love when my mom chose to stay on even though she had a choice to abandon us.

I learned the meaning of perseverance no matter what happens. Every cloud has a silver lining.

I learned to appreciate what we already have and eliminate crave for what we don’t have.

I learned the fact that everything in life has ups and downs. One day you can be healthy. Other days you can be sick.

I learned the importance of being on your own feet. The world doesn’t owe you anything.

I must say it's not easy for me to go through this test of life while one's supposed to enjoy what a teen had to enjoy. But that's life.

That was like more than 20 years ago. People say you come out a tougher person after an adversity. You know what, it’s true.

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