Hong Kong Young Writers Anthologies Fiction 4-7 2019 | Page 250

New Tales of the Ming Treasure Voayages Buddhist Sin Tak College, Chu, Yannis - 16 As far we know human beings have always been resilient and tough, striving to make the world a better place. Throughout the time of my voyage, we encountered various scenarios—hostile, nonchalant, hospitable and of course there were times of euphoria and exhilaration. Time flies. We first set sail two years ago and now we are preparing for the second voyage. The sense of pride and achievement that comes with sailing is priceless. Not only do we want to experience a whole new world, but we also want to promote peace and mutual understanding amongst nations as we start our adventures. Thus, we brought along gold, silver and agricultural technology on our quest for the exchange of knowledge. Moreover, we endeavour to meet the locals so as to learn something new from them because they may be wiser than us. Their mentality and experiences will differ from us, city men, we are always fixed inside our own culture and traditions. After a long and careful deliberation, 100 or so sailors and I decided to sail around the world and the voyage would last for at least one year. When it came to preparation, we spent about half a year, getting everything ready. We prepared the equipment - ropes, kerosene torches, oars…Of course we also needed maps, food, clothes, clean water, weapons and so on. We had a chain of strenuous and arduous trainings. Most important was the boat we used for sailing. We did not buy the ship, but instead we decided to build one. Without doubts, it was not an easy job. From purchasing the best materials to the final step, they were all done with our very own hands. We had hard times. Yet we surmounted all the difficulties like the time the ship could not float for the first time. And finally, we set off. The first six months was nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing exciting happened. “This voyage is not as amazing as I expected. Was it a mistake to set sail?” These ideas appeared in all our minds. We wanted to pursue excitement but this half of the year disappointed us. What we hoped for was something amazing but got nothing in return. However, our hopes for excitement did not end well. A sudden stormy night took 30 sailors’ lives. The storm came from nowhere. We started to notice the power of nature and that we were at her mercy. It was a general truth that a single natural disaster could break millions of families into pieces. However, being human, we cannot evade these events as we are part of nature. It is patently clear that we cannot surmount nature but we can definitely accept our coexist peacefully. Good signs appeared in the seventh month. We kept sailing, crossing the Pacific Ocean unwittingly. Eventually we met a boat on the Arabian Sea. They waved at us and were extremely friendly. We made commercial exchanges despite differences in culture and a lack of a common language. The encounter was gratifying, even though we did not speak the same language, we used our body language and facial expressions to express ourselves effectively. We also shared our food and clothes with them. Even though it was the first time for us to encounter such a foreign culture it was not as difficult as we thought to get along. Different nations should definitely seek common grounds while holding back their differences. Please don’t forget that we are an integral whole living on this earth. The eighth month was of significant value to us as it was the time when we had our first battle with pirates. They had three vessels in total and each vessel was double ours in size! Nonetheless, all of us did not give up and spared no effort to fight them. At last, we won. It was a difficult war because we did not have enough weapons. However, our spirits were always alight and we were led by our primal need for survival. After the war, both sides suffered heavy losses. It was discovered that battles are detrimental in all aspects. As a result, peacefulness should always be pursued as no one wants a life of suffering. Please always bear in mind that there must be some ways that are better than war to settle disputes. What’s next, we had brand new experiences of meeting aborigines in the ninth month. As we predicted, they were wiser than us but lived in primitive circumstances. Their planting skills were more efficient, I’ll give them that, but the island where they have lived for generations was not as advanced compared to our modern city. Though, they were content. They never grumbled and instead, they strived to better themselves. We may not find this environment acceptable, but why not give it a try one day? I don’t mean that we should live a primordial lifestyle, but we should be satisfied with what we have and not always ask for more. It is impossible for us to possess all the treasures in the world, instead we should learn to treasure what we already have.