The title for this year's essay is 'Be Careful of What You Wish For'. The students who sent in their entries were:
1. Cassandra (5 Omega)
2. Thivya (4 Omega)
3. Jean Lee (4 Omega)
4. Rashmi (4 Omega)
5. Samantha (4 Omega)
6. Kristen Lim (4 Omega)
7. Ruth Kezia Hope (3 Omega)
8. Linda Lau (3 Omega)
The result was announced on 23 May 2012. Kristen Lim from SMK Puteri won a consolation prize.
Kristen Lim posing for picture with the Irish ambassador, Declan Kelly. 1500 entries were received for the competition where 20 was selected for the finals. Below is the essay that enabled Kristen to win the consolation prize.
NAME: KRISTEN LIM YEUNG LYN
AGE: 15
NAME OF SCHOOL: SMK PUTERI,
SEREMBAN
Be Careful What You Wish For
They say that the woods are a
dangerous place. Filled with an ominous air, danger lurks in the shadows as it waits
for its next prey.
Living in a village by the forest, little Jenna had always been warned of it.
Dark tales about it had been around since forever and everyone knew better than
to go near it. But to Jenna, danger was just a relative word that didn’t really
concern her. So whenever Jenna headed towards the woods to escape from the
troubles at home, she didn’t consider it unthinkable to do so.
“Hey, why are you crying? Girls
like you shouldn't be crying at a place like this."
Jenna looked up tearfully and found a pair of black eyes looking back at her.
She was startled. No one had ever noticed her before much less asked about her.
She stared at the boy in front of her. He was a young, black haired, black eyed
kid with tanned complexion. Holding a basket of supplies bought presumably for
his mother, he looked like a random kid from the village who coincidentally
wandered by, but Jenna was sure she had never seen him before.
"Come on. Do you want to cry on my shoulder to feel better? Mamma says I
have good shoulders," the boy offered.
She gave a slight giggle at his words. What a weird boy he was. Usually the
boys in the village would tease and laugh at her for crying, but he was
different. Looking into his black eyes, she felt compelled to pour out her
problems to this complete stranger despite the warning bells ringing in her
head.
Ignoring them, she beckoned him to sit and told him about the problems at home.
She told him about her parents who always fought and how they always ended up
in two separate taverns, too drunk to bring the bread home. She told him about
her siblings who had left the village to get away from their parents. Three had
left and she would never see them again.
When she was done, she looked up at him hesitantly, hoping that he wouldn’t
change his mind about her after her story. To her surprise, his face was full
of sympathy as he scooted closer to hug her. Jenna stiffened at first but his
hug was comforting and soothing to her aching heart. She gave in and hugged him
back, glad for the comfort.
"If you had three wishes, what would you wish for?" the boy abruptly
asked.
She gave him with a weird look, wondering why he changed the subject but
thought about it. Seeing his expectant face, she replied quietly, “Right now, my
only wish is that my mummy and daddy will stop fighting with each other."
The boy smiled at her brightly and said, “Consider that wish fulfilled.”
Jenna frowned and was about to ask
what he meant when he stood up with an apologetic look. "Sorry but I need
to go now. Don’t want to get into trouble with my momma. Bye."
With that, he disappeared from sight, leaving her bewildered about his words.
Sighing, she got up. It’s no point trying to understand something when it’s
beyond your grasp. Dusting off her threadbare skirt, she headed back home. But
this time, she returned with a skip in her steps, her thoughts occupied by a
certain black eyed boy.
But what she didn't realise was that from the forest, that pair of black eyes,
the eyes that were now empty pools of darkness, were watching her receding back
with eerie satisfaction.
"Girl, get back here right
now. When I catch you, you’ll be sorry you ran away."
Jenna heard the voice behind her and ran faster, fear pushing her forward as
she tried to lose the man who was chasing after her. She knew the voice and she
knew that it was no idle threat. Her father always kept his word, even when he
was drunk.
She ran until the edge of the village where the fringes of the forest were just
within reached. She willed herself to run faster towards the trees, where she knew
he was waiting for her. Behind her, her father's voice slowly faded.
When she reached the boy near the trees, she ran and hugged him, sobbing softly
while he patted her. It was just a year since she met him but much had happened
since then.
Weeks after they met, her mother was killed by her father in one of their
fights. In a twisted way, her wish came true because her father and mother
would never fight again. Two of her other siblings also ran away from home soon
after, leaving the three youngest siblings behind. Her father, with no one else
to abuse, started mistreating his remaining kids. Frequently, after being
beaten up by him, Jenna would run to the forest where the boy would be waiting.
He always had the uncanny knack of knowing just when she needed him and had
been a great comfort to her.
After a while, Jenna asked,
"Remember once you asked me what I would wish for if I had three wishes?”
The boy nodded slightly.
"Well, my second wish is to have all my siblings back and my third wish is
that you will be my friend forever."
The boy turned towards her and looked her in the eye as he asked," Are
those really your wishes?"
She looked at the little girl staring back at her from his black eyes and made
up her mind.
"Yes, it is"
Swiftly, the boy grabbed her hand and started dragging her into the forest.
Jenna gave a startled yelp as she tried to free her hand from his vicelike
grip.
"Wait, what are you doing?" she asked.
The boy turned around with a twisted smile as his eyes lit up with a sinister
glint. "Making your wishes come true. Momma would love to meet you,"
he replied eerily.
Shock coursed through her as she suddenly remembered the stories that floated
around the village about people who disappeared in forest and never returned.
Those who did escape came back totally changed, as though they had seen great
evil, but that rarely happened if ever.
Jenna tried to fight back but the boy was stronger than her. She yelled loudly
but no one was around. The terror she had felt earlier was nothing compared to
this and her frightened pleas for help were soon swallowed by the woods as it
engulfed both of them.
Three months later, a funeral was
held for Jenna Haftstring. The villagers had found a hand with a ring on the
finger that belonged to Jenna. Further
efforts to search for her body proved futile and eventually they gave up. For
the first time in five years, all of Jenna's siblings came back to the village
for the funeral. Jenna's second wish came true.
But as for her third wish, who knows? After all, they say that the woods are a
dangerous place. But what they should have known is that you should be careful
what you wish for, because wishes can come true in the most unexpected way.
(1200 words)
