Searching for a Friend

          Ten years ago, me and my family lived in China because of my father's work. Right after arriving from Japan to China, I already had a hard time adjusting to the new enviroment. I felt like everything that I am used to have changed. We have new home, new neighbours, new lifestyle, new enviroment, new language, new school, and new classmates. I was having a hard time adjusting to all the new things. Because of that I became a very quiet and unsociable young girl.

              At home, I always spend my day alone because my parents were not always home and were busy from their work. My father’s job is a businessman on a Japanese company in China; on the other hand, my mother’s job is designing and decorating things. They always come home late or tired from working that is why there are times that I cannot speak with them.

            My situation at home affected my attitude on school. I became a very timid and quiet student and I am having problems communicating with other people because I am still not used to Chinese language. I thought that it would only last for some time and I just said to myself that maybe in time; I can cope with the new environment and can even have new friends. But many months had passed and still, I wasn’t able to make even a single friend. All of my classmates are always avoiding me and don’t want to play with me. They are saying that they can’t understand me and I am not fit to be their playmates. I was always the target for bullying and I didn’t have any friends that I can rely on. On our class, there is this girl who was called Mei. Mei and I have a very different personality. She is an outgoing and cheerful girl and is always the center of attention at our school. During those times, I envy her because I was jealous of all the things that she can do but I can’t. I am always asking myself “why can’t I be like Mei when we are at the same grade with the same age?”

             When my father noticed my being unsociable girl at school, he gave me a puppy as a present during my fifth birthday. I named him Nyon-nyon. Nyon-nyon is a fluffy, soft, small and black puppy. Nyon-nyon became my one and only friend during those times. Whenever I was lonely, I always look for my puppy Nyon-nyon. I always spend my free time with him, always play with him, sleep with him and eat with him.We are always playing with the ball. Nyon-nyon loves to run while I roll the ball and whenever he runs, I always run with him. Nyon-nyon also loved drinking milk. Every time I eat my favourite ice cream, I am always giving him his favourite milk and then we’ll eat together happily. During that time, Nyon-nyon became my one and only best friend. He became my strength and I always took care of him and loved him as much as I can. I treated him not as a puppy but like a man. I said to myself that “Dog really is a man’s best friend”.

            One day when I was bullied by my classmates, I hurriedly went home crying, Once I got home, I looked for Nyon-nyon immediately. When I found him, I hugged him very tightly while crying. A hug just like a mother would do to her child. I was surprised because Nyon-nyon licked my tears as if he understood what I am feeling. After that, I felt relieved and it feels like all the pain had vanished and the day passed as if nothing happened. It was a very peaceful night that time and I slept calmly.

          One day, my parents decided to hire a nanny because they said that they are worried about me. The nanny’s name that my parents hired is Ten Chang. Ten Chang has a short hair, tall, wearing glasses and is younger than my mother. At first I thought that she was a nice person and I can go well with her. I was excited because I thought that I am going to have a new friend whom I can talk to. But as time passed, I realized that my first impression for her was wrong. She was an irresponsible and ill-mannered nanny. She always watches her favourite television shows and slacks off all her works whenever my parents are not around. I was deeply disappointed as nothing has changed since she came.

           Another day of bullying came for me and I went home crying again. Once I got home, I felt something unusual and weird because Nyon-nyon didn’t greet me. Then suddenly, I smelled something weird coming from the kitchen. When I went to see what is happening in the kitchen, I saw Ten Chang cooking. When I asked Ten-Chang what is she cooking, she did not reply. Then I asked her again, where Nyon-nyon could be. But for the second time, she did not reply. I felt a bad atmosphere and an unexpected bad suspicion popped on my mind. I asked her for the third time if the dish that she is cooking is Nyon-nyon. She looked at me with an unexplainable expression but for me I immediately understood what that look is supposed to mean. She cooked Nyon-nyon! Because of the undistinguished feeling that I felt during that time, my mind went blank. My one and only best friend is now gone. I cried really hard and run away far from our house until I reached a park. I sat down and cried really hard as if I’m dying because the pain in my chest is really hurting. Unexpectedly, I felt a hand touched my head. I was surprised that the cheerful girl who is always the center of attention at our school is comforting me. “But she is the exact opposite of me”, that was the first thing that came to my mind. She told me that she saw me running while she is playing at the nearby park and when she noticed that it was me, she followed me until she reached the park where we are now. She asked me what is wrong. I told her to go away but she declined it. She still stays there trying to cheer me up and comfort me. Because I really needed somebody to talk to at that time, I told her everything about Nyon-nyon and how I lose him. She felt sorry for me and suddenly apologized for what our classmates had done to me. She told me that she is selling puppies and asked me if I want a new one. Hearing those words from her somehow made me feel better. I started to feel comfortable talking with her and then we had a smooth and fun conversation about puppies. I realized that I was wrong for judging her without even knowing her real personality. I went home with Mei, and then I saw my parents looking for me. I told them the story. When they were about to fire Ten Chang, I told them that it is fine already and that I had already forgiven her. Ten Chang apologized to me and she promised that she will never do that again. My mother quit her job to look after me and spend more time with me. Ten Chang changed and she becomes responsible. My father bought me a new dog and he named it “Futaba” which means “the bud or sprout of our new love”. Because of that I gained more confidence and made new friends and one of them is of course Mei. They always go in our house to play with Futaba.

              I will alway remember Nyon-nyon, he will always be the best dog that I ever had and he will forever remain in my heart. And I would always be thankful to Mei for understanding my situation. I realized that in life, there would be sacrifices and when we lost something important there would always come new and greater consequences. Obstacles in life would only make us even stronger.