Chi Mai
Professor Joseph McDade
English 1303
8 October 2014

Assignment 1

“I was trapped in this cave and there is no way out to escape,” I grit my teeth. In order to become a hero and be able to protect everyone, two years ago, I decided to learn anything that would help me become someone people can rely on. To be honest, I planned to do this for a long time ago and finally I had a chance to do it. At that time, I did not have any tools to help me because I thought I was equipped with the necessary skills to survive any harsh environment. The reason for me to do this is “I want to become a hero so anyone can rely on me.” However, that is not important anymore because now, I am facing the reaper. He is holding a gun and can shoot me to death whenever he want. How can I escape from this?
When I was a kid, I always wanted to become someone who was useful and reliable. Superman was an important character in my childhood. I had always considered him as an idol who I really wanted to become. That was the reason why I always tried to stay at the top in both academic and social fields. Christopher Reeve says, “What makes Superman a hero is not that he has power, but that he has the wisdom and the maturity to use the power wisely. From an acting point of view, that's how I approached the part.” Supermans may not be the best compared to Batman, Spiderman, Storm, etc…However, he was the first character I knew from a comic book I got from my uncle. It had been twelve years since I started to live under his “shadow”. Not only his power, no one could deny his wisdom and maturity which significantly impacted his life. No one knew about his true self. He lived under the cover of a normal man but always appeared whenever someone called for help. Without hesitation, he could finish his enemy instantly. Everyone including myself loved him for his generosity and heroism.
I was born an orphan kid and grew up in a local church of my hometown. Living without the care of my parents was painful that I could never forget. However, everyone at church loved me so much and they were always at my side. Whenever I felt lonely or troublesome, there was always someone who would stay with me. Everyone was so kind to an orphan kid like me and I wanted to repay the kindness. “Anyone can mimic like a monkey,” that is what I thought when I was a kid. It was really funny because whenever I saw anyone walking by my place, I would always ask if they needed help. At that time, I thought if I could do that then I could also be a superhero. However, for a kid like me, that was everything I could do because father Stuart has once told me that I do not have to do those things. He could really understand how I felt but he did not want me to get hurt again. Fortunately, we had a long talk after that and I was able to convince him to let me help everyone at the church. That was the first step of my hero journey.
“Hold on, a minute! What am I doing? Why am I thinking about the past at a dire time like this?” That killer is standing around the corner, raising his gun to my side and smiling, possibly the scariest smile I had ever seen. “Wake up, wake up, I have to wake up…No, what should I do?” There was no way to escape from this. I acted recklessly and I was paying back for it. At that moment, I no longer wanted to be a hero. Running away maybe the only thing I could do.
“You can't relate to a superhero, to a superman, but you can identify with a real man who in times of crisis draws forth some extraordinary quality from within himself and triumphs but only after a struggle.” A real man could overcome any obstacles. If you failed the first time, you learned from your mistake to avoid more failures. Time flew and I became a high school student. Father Stuart sent me over to Uncle Tom and I lived under his protection. Uncle Tom taught me lots of things about life, how to survive without food or water…For a kid without any experiences, I truly respected him. He also let me learn taekwondo so I could protect myself from dangers. I did not like it at first but was engaged after watching a Bruce Lee movie. I had learned a lot of thing from him, so I decided to focus more on martial art. Not only on that field, father Stuart also told me I needed to attend school because knowledge was the most important thing we needed. Ever since my childhood, I did not like to study. One day, I decided to skip a school day in order to hang out with my friends.
Just as what I planned, Uncle Tom went to work before I went to school so skipping was not a problem. An anonymous voice, “Hey, Chizz…Hurry up before they found out!” That was from Brandon, who was my closest friend at the time. A few days before that, we had an adventure on the mountain side of our village and we discovered a secret hideout that hid behind the main shrine, so we decided that we would come back one day secretly. We both thought about many things that could happen to us. The road seemed darker than usual even though it was only mid-spring. We followed the path that lead us to the secret hideout. That place was actually a cave an old man in our village made in order to find diamond. It had been 12 years and no one ever went there. It would be easier if we came just for fun but this time, we decided to stay in that cave longer than expected. I was the one who did not bring anything along, just my bare hands and skills that I always practiced whenever I had free time.
Finally, the hideout showed off. It is still the same as before, the only thing missing was the stop sign in front of the cave. At first, none of us noticed at that until we stepped in. I turned on the lighter so we could have a better view. Nothing odds happened and it was very quiet, I could say “in a scary way”. I turned to Brandon and I noticed that he is mumbling something but I could not understand it at all. “Hey, Brandon! Are you ok?” I shook his shoulder. “No, no I am ok! Anything happened?” he turned to my side. Yes, there was nothing special until we reached a dead end. “So, there is nothing special down here”, I says. So, we decided to leave the hideout immediately. Suddenly, right at that moment, there was an earthquake and everything started to fell down and I did not know what happened after that.
“Where am I…?” I woke up and looked around, it was too dark to see anything. Luckily, Brandon has already prepared a lighter but where is Brandon. I tried to find him but there was not a single sign of him. I had to find because I was the one who came up with this crazy idea. And right at that moment, something outrageous happened in front of my eyes. Brandon- my friend- was lying in the corner of the cave, surrounded by a bunch of rocks. I had to take him out of this cave as soon as possible. But, thing did not come easily for me. I saw him, yes, there was someone who was standing next to Brandon, quietly watching my actions. I could hear his breath, slowly, but that could cause goose bumps for me. “No matter what they wish for, no matter how far they go, people can never be anything but themselves.” Suddenly, those words from “Blind Willow, Sleeping Woman” come to my mind and finally I can realize what I suppose to do right now. Brandon was in danger, I did not care where did that strange man come from but I had a feeling that he is very dangerous for both of us. My safety is not important anymore but I was the one who brought Brandon in danger, I have my duty to protect him. He did not move at all or say anything. Never mind, there is no time to think, I have to take him out of here immediately.
That strange guys was looking at me, what was he planning to do? Shoot me? He had a gun on his hand and he can shoot me whenever he want. What should I do? It was too dark and I could not see anything clearly. ”If you think God’s there, he is. If you don’t, he isn’t. And if that’s what God’s like, I would not worry about it.” How can I forget it, I was born without my parent and raised under a church. I met God, talk to him every day. How could I forget about him easily like that? Yes, God is always by my side so I will not scare at anything, include that strange man. Instantly, I remember what I have learned from Uncle Tom and started doing what they call “taekwondo”. Running to him without hesitation like a squirrel, I kicked his hand and threw the gun away. The odd thing is he did not respond at all or even defend back. No, I do not have time to think about that. I quickly brag Brandon on shoulder, luckily he is still breathing. Leaving that strange man behind, I tried to run as fast as I can. I did not remember how could I climb up and escape but I am outside of the cave now.
Who is that strange guy in the cave, why he did not fight back when I kicked him? That question keeps sticking in my head and I do not know what was going on. “Whatever it is you are seeking will not come in the form you are expecting.” At least, finally, I can understand the real meaning of being a hero. It is not like you will have any special power to overcome anything but you have to think about it, try to find a way to solve it by yourself. This time, I was putting myself in danger and faced dire problem that might end up my life but luckily, both of us still survive, thank God, father Stuart, and uncle Tom that we both could alive until now. Brandon is ok, I remember his smiley when I took him home yesterday. Unfortunately, Uncle Tom found out what we did and I actually had a long lecture time. But that is ok, at least I learned something new…However, there was one odd thing that I noticed, Uncle Tom has a mark that exactly on the place where I kicked the strange man in that cave…

Work Cited

Murakami, Haruki. Kafka on the Shore. Haruki Murakami, 2002.
Murakami, Haruki . "Notable." Kafka on the Shore quotes. 6 Jun. 2009. <http://www.notable-quotes.com/m/murakami_haruki.html#3vYdS2icCijiErlm.99>.
Reeve, Christopher . Brainy quote. 2013. <http://www.brainyquote.com/quotes/quotes/c/christophe471514.html>.
Murakami, Haruki . "Notable." Kafka on the Shore quotes. 6 Jun. 2009. < http://www.notable-quotes.com/m/murakami_haruki.html >.