My New Life - Pt. 1

As a child growing up in Taiwan, there were many things my brother and I were deprived of. Childhood was tough, and corporal punishment lined our everyday. As soon as we started school, we were told to be “the best”. Every day was stressful, starting school at 7.30am, and finishing each day at 5pm.

The year I turned eight, my parents decided it was time we immigrated to a new place. My brother had just finished elementary school, and I had only finished my third year. We didn’t really understand what was happening, but we packed for travel like we were told to, as excitement seeped through our every move.

I must have been asleep when we were at the airport’s check-in desk, as I don’t remember it. By the time I was conscious, we were waiting in a large room with tall glass windows, and outside sat planes bigger than I had ever imagined them. “Look! That’s the plane we’re going to be riding in!” My brother exclaimed to me enthusiastically. “Look how big it is!” My father, who was a pilot, explained to me what each of the big parts of a plane does, and my mother smiled as she watched my eyes widen with wonder.

A lady made an announcement, and we started to walk towards a tunnel. By the time we got to the end of the tunnel, I could smell the strong stench of airplane diesel. The stench slowly turned into the scent of coffee as the tunnel turned into a small room filled with seats, with tiny windows along both walls. My parents took me and my brother through each cabin, until we found our seats and put our bags away.

The flight was fairly empty. There were roughly 10 people in each cabin. My brother sat at a window seat, and I snuggled in the seat behind him, while my parents parked themselves next to us. I watched in great anticipation while the flight attendants preformed the safety procedures, and followed them as they taught me how to fasten and undo my seatbelt. “When we take off, you will feel some pressure in your ears”, my mother explained to me. “When you do, just swallow some saliva, you’ll feel a lot better”. I nodded in response. As the plane started its rolling taxi, I sat back and watched the ground pass behind us, and slowly I felt the gravity below us strengthen as we left the ground. Sure enough, my ears started to pop.

The flight was calm. My brother and I played magnetic travel board games that we had prepared for the flight, to kill the 14 hours of boredom. The flight attendant also brought us some puzzles and packs of poker cards, and my brother showed me some magic tricks. Before the landing, the flight attendant came around with a basket full of lollies for us to choose from, and told us that it was to help with the pressure in our ears when we start to descend. She was right! It did wonders! I looked out the window as we started to lower, and saw green meadows and forests, the green grass contrasted by little white dots. “Those are sheep” my mother told me. “They look like silkworms sitting on mulberry leaves!” I responded.