Wednesday, April 22, 2015

April Showers Bring May flowers



Hello friends,

Spring is finally here! I hope you are enjoying April's showers, the flowers and the mild temperature that we have been getting with the new season.

In Malaysia, there is no spring, fall or winter. There is just hot and hotter. It does cool down during the monsoon season after the rain. The catch-22 is the high humidity during the day, before it rains, followed by a drop in temperature in the low 70s later on. However, for a teenager going through puberty in Malaysia, the heat is constant. I just finished writing Chapter Four of my book, which is all about my first man-crush, losing my virginity to a man, and coming to terms with my confused homosexuality.

Have you heard of "Manglish" (a.k.a. Malaysian English)? This is a hybrid of phrases and terms from all the languages spoken in Malaysia. Although not the official language, Manglish is commonly spoken by everyone on the streets of Malaysia. Since every Malaysian knows as least two or three languages, some of these words are "borrowed" from other languages to form a sentence. I have included many examples of Manglish use in Chapter Four. You can also check out a few examples of Manglish on my Pinterest Board (also named 'Manglish'). I hope you will find it interesting.

My friend Gavin and I tried to make the Nyonya kuih a couple of weeks ago. The result was as good as we expected, especially being first time we ever tried to make it ourselves. We will be testing out more Malaysian dessert recipes next month before we plan on having a tasting party. Stay tuned for that announcement coming soon!

The next few chapters that I am working on will be focus on when I first arrived in the United States through the time I moved to New York City, before I seroconverted. As the story progresses, the topics have more weight on me and it takes longer to write. My anxiety is significantly higher due to the complicity of the stories that I am about to tell. I'm being careful to not glaze over vivid details during this time of growth, especially in detailing the series of actions that lead me to my drug use. It's a challenge to relive this part of my past as I write but I do it with self compassion.

I am happy that I have the wisdom and the knowledge I have today to write the book objectively. My publisher, Afdhere, has forewarned me that I may not get the rewards and validations that I want right away but can look forward to the end results when the book is published. I sincerely hope that someone will be able to learn something from my stories and, even better, get inspired.

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