I was introduced to the article written by Mr Chan Wai Lun recently, which the title of this article of mine is a duplication of his, I find that it is so much so of a déjà vu.
I realize that I have always been living on the track preset. Never once would I cross beyond the boundaries. I love to stay in my own shell that Mr Chang would joke that I’m from Mars and coming for a visit now to earth. Sigh!
Eye-opening
Ever since I joined this firm, every moment is a challenge. I had the opportunity to follow Mr Chang and Ms Lim to court and observe how trials are conducted in court. This is definitely what one could not learn from the books.
I also had the opportunity to observe the execution of a writ of seizure and sale, which is a straightforward process I thought at first until we met the judgment debtor. The debtor refused to accept the reality of the execution when the bailiff told her of it and thus causing all sorts of hoo-ha. Fortunately, through the negotiations between my colleagues in the office and the debtor, the matter finally reached a conclusion by the agreement of settlement of debt by the debtor.
These are really eye-opening experiences which I could not learn from reading.
One minute on stage takes ten years of practice
My first assignment here in ACC was to “act out” a less than 3 minutes video clip from one of the Stephen Chow’s movies, “Justice, My Foot!”. The video clip was about the cross-examination of witnesses. I find that this exercise is very useful as it makes me realize that if one cannot actually memorise or remember a less than 3 minutes video clip, how could he ever remember what witness or witnesses have said during a cross-examination in the trial which might go on for hours! I can replay the video clip, again and again, to memorise what the parties have said in the clip but like what Mr Chang told me, in real life, there is no replay! True, we do not have a chance to replay what a particular witness had said in the court. And more importantly, we cannot mess up what was being said by the particular witness!
It may take several weeks or a few months of work to prepare for the submission, but one might only have a brief ten minutes to present the same before the judge.
Twas always thus, and always thus will be
As from what was mentioned earlier, besides from learning the technicalities in the work, Mr Chang actually conveyed quite some useful messages to me, which reminds me of one of my favourite movies, “Dead Poets Society” where Robin Williams acted as Mr John Keating, an English teacher teaching in the elite conservative Vermont boarding school Welton Academy, who inspired his students through his teachings of poetry.
The scene was that Mr Keating told his boys, :
“Boys, you must strive to find your own voice, because the longer you wait to begin, the less likely you are to find it at all. Thoreau said, “Most men lead lives of quiet desperation.” Don’t be resigned to that. Break Out. Don’t just walk off the edge like lemmings. Look around you. Dare to strike out and find new ground.”
I find it so relevant as I am having the same problem which was pointed out by Mr Chang. Mr Chang would always want me to speak firmly and confidently. This is extremely important as being a litigator, one must be bold to speak up. Working is totally different from studying. As the saying goes, easy doesn’t enter into grown-up life. The responsibility now lies on your shoulders, to account for what you do. Similarly, the client has appointed you as his counsel and you are now his voice. You represent him in what you say and what you do.
It takes courage to be bold and stand up for your client, however, this is what is required if one were to be a litigator. I know that if I want to become a litigator, I can not just sit there and remain dormant I should step forward, take up the opportunity given and transform into a new self. This definitely would be a challenge for me in the next few months or even years to come.
When there’s a will, there’s a way.
The famous passage in the book, “The Golden Age” written by Wang, Xiaobo, as translated by Hongling Zhang and Jason Sommer to “Wang in Love and Bondage” reads as follows, “That day I was twenty-one and in the golden age of my life. I had so many desires; I wanted to love, to eat, and to be turned in a flash into the half-bright and half-dark cloud in the sky. Only much later did I realize that life is a slow process of being hammered. People grow old day after day, their desire disappears little by little, and finally, they become like those hammered bulls. However, that idea never crossed my mind on my twenty-first birthday. I thought I would always be lively and strong, and that nothing could beat me.”
Sounds absurd huh? One can feel the desperation from this passage. I thought that growing into adulthood often meant that we are no longer vulnerable. To be precise, vulnerability is a shameful word in the adult world. No one knows since when the world is no longer forgiving towards fragility. Nobody cares about your fragility, or maybe we are too good at camouflaging it.
What I learnt here, is that one should stand up from where he has stumbled. For what it is worth, it is never too late. I can change or stay the same. There are no rules, the choice is mine. I can make the best or worst of it. I hope to see things that startled myself. I hope to feel things I never felt before. I hope to meet people with different perspectives. I hope I live a life I’m proud of.
Lastly, if I find that I’m not, I hope that I have the strength to start all over again. Yes, to start all over again! This is exactly what I’m doing now in ACC! I made mistakes, was forgiven and I learnt!
Guidance of Research
I have been doing research on quite a number of topics for the past few weeks and each time I took a very long time to finish the task assigned. Guidance will be given throughout the research and sometimes Mr Chang will ask me to report on the outcome of the research. Opportunities and directions are available, seek and ye shall find.
Of course, credits not only to Mr Chang alone but to the team in ACC as a whole.
Carpe diem
Life is immense. Live rather than survive. Seize the day. Make your life extraordinary. That’s what I would tell my 17-year-old self.
I shall be grateful, “O Captain, my Captain.”
Anni Ng
Advance Tertiary College (ATC)
