The Day I Defined Admiration



We often take hours thinking about people we envy. Here
is what I wrote after meeting a person who is now a
very good friend of mine. Photo:Goggle.



By Harold Maesulia.  Follow me on twitter.

A sight of you reminded me of the $2000 worth canon camera I saw at PROUDS*the other day. I’ve always wanted to own a camera that can capture my everyday life in style so that I’ll have a store of memories to look back to in the future. Do I have that amount to give me the title to that high tech cam? Poor me, now I just have to settle down with the wish that one day I’ll get to have that substantial amount so that I’ll get to pay that stunning canon product.

You have the smile of a down to earth girl. You appear to have no problem falling in a conversation with anyone-just anyone at all. Those were my first impressions of you. When I first sighted you, I decided not to allow myself to fall for your beauty. People say looks can be deceiving. So I took a stand on the way side to give myself time to see you in person.

The girl that my eyes were set on has a magnetic aura around her. Her ways are worth dying for. She has a good sense of humor. She talks and laughs in a friendly way. She’s natural. She doesn’t choose to enhance her looks with make ups. Donned with a pretty smile, she was quick to get on the wagon when our topic flew from our usual island way of introduction to the tones of jokes I had in store. I’ve decided to act as if we’ve met each other before. Hence I resort to man the conversation with more jokes. She contributed nicely and I could see the calmness in her eyes.

Somewhere in each person’s heart, there are wishes. One of those is the wish to find someone you’ll get to share your life with.

I ran into you by accident, but after settling down to have my eyes see for themselves the beauty within you, I knew I had something to say about you. Was it love? Well I opted to again take the stand on the way side. I have a reason for doing that-what if the person I’m eyeing is already taken? It’s shameful to come in unexpectedly between two people, isn’t it?

We can’t stop events from appealing to our minds, but even though how much you admire them, face the reality. Not all of them will be yours no matter how much you wish. I don’t know how long it’ll take for me to own such an iconic camera. May be a year or 2? Oh perhaps not at all. Well it’s not wrong to admire something when it looks good. I’d be happy if I don’t get to have the camera after all. At least I was fascinated by the amount of wonders it can do in the world of photography. May be I am meant to go with my laid back SUMSUNG brand that is laying around at my Waimanu* flat.

The accident I went through by coming across you was indeed an exciting one. I knew I met a kind hearted person. Thanks for nourishing my life with all those smiles. We own the key to our own hearts and the task of opening it is only done when the person who is knocking is the one you want him in. I don’t want to knock at your door today because I don’t want to draw your attention from the one you already have inside. I’m just passing by your dwelling to admire its architecture. Thanks for inspiring me. I will always keep a smile inside to remember the day I met you.

Bye,

Mr. Aimless Admirer (Harold Maesulia)

*PROUDS is a one of the world class shops in Suva.

*Waimanu is the name of the street I live in at Suva.

A Lesson from Kinoya

Kasa (far left) and some members of the MBBS III class.
 Photo: Harold Maesulia

Ask any of the MBBS III (Bachelor of Medicine, and Bachelor of Surgery) students at the Fiji School of Medicine how they feel about Community Public Health classes on Wednesdays and you’ll get a mixed reaction. Besides the loyal who always turn up as early as 8 am each Wednesday to catch the school bus to Tamavua, you’ll surely find a group of students who remain uninterested in joining the fun of bus riding up and down the hills.

While concentration was perhaps a battle I fought to win during each class, it turned out after all that my attendance record for these classes was good because I enjoyed what was supposed not to be the whole point of each Wednesday morning. Well, I couldn’t help it but I was so hooked on the euphoria that comes with the morning bus rides.

By Harold Maesulia
Follow me on twitter.

So when one of those classes was replaced by a field trip to the Tamavua Water Treatment Plant and the Sewage Treatment Plant at Kinoya, I headed to the Chinese Shop a few yards from home to load my camera with some Energizer Batteries. Because I was so sure that this time the bus ride would be longer.

With the camera diagonally strapped across my body, I headed to Pasifika (our school campus) quite early with Mathew and Maria. We were quite excited and perhaps the excitement hit me more than my two colleagues because within minutes after living the comfort of our flat, I popped into an Indian Eatery to get us some sandwiches for lunch.

The trip up to Tamavua was refreshing. With the beautiful tunes from Legend FM’s breakfast show hitting me from my ear phones plus the busy but beautiful Suva traffic building up massively along the way, I sat back in awe as if I was on a holiday.

What awaits us at the Water Treatment Plant was a story told to us by actually walking us through the amazing plant. Segmented into areas where water takes time to go through each cleaning process, we were shown what actually happens at each stage.


The final filter before the water actually goes for chlorination was the bit I found to be quite puzzling. “What?” I whispered to myself after our tour guard told us that it’s the final filter. Well, it was the color of the water that alarmed me. It was like mud. “This stage uses a specially imported sand to clean the water-even bacteria are removed here,” our tour guard emphasized.

It was not long after that when I settled down to agree with the gentle man. The end product of the filter was so crystal clear. My camera agreed so I allowed it to do its job. Its shutter clicked and went the FLASH!

We headed up the building to see where chlorination occurs. It was breath taking from the top of the building. The whole plant from up there looked like a park of ferry wheels.



We were supposed to bag the whole lot of information imparted on us by the friendly tour guard, but most of us didn’t. I was so carried away with my photographing endeavor that I later disliked myself for acting like a photographer who had to cover an event for a paper. Well, blame photo fanatics like Kasanita and Maria who followed the camera like it’s their bread and butter. Boy, these beings just want to be in every photo…Kasa would probably be given some mercy, because while in Fiji, that’s my Tau.



Only at Kinoya...The sewage is
 turned into harmless forms before they’re disposed
 into the sea. Photo: Harold Maesulia.

When we came down, we were made to have lunch before heading for Kinoya. I overheard from someone that we have to eat before heading to Kinoya because that’s where whatever is deposited when one visits the toilet ends up to be turned into harmless forms before they’re disposed into the sea.

The smell was kind of different when we arrived there. I opted not to cover my nose although the methane seemed to touch the nerves that are responsible for bringing one’s hands to his nose to keep them out of the smell’s reach.



Everything appeared to be functioning the usual way for the guys at the sewage treatment plant. A man in overalls was cutting the grass outside the main office with all smiles. He didn’t wear any masks.



The security officer at the front gate looked just like the ones at Pasifika. He too was without a mask.

Well, I said to myself, why worry, let’s enjoy the environment! I followed nothing whatsoever that was said during that time because I was either taking photos or enjoying the fun of getting use to the smell.



I whispered to myself “boy if I can handle this smell, I can handle anything!”