dark underwater light , she looked around frantically , strands of her hair floating up beside her ears . She glanced up where a blinding light was shining down , and paddled until she broke the surface , gasping for air .
Instead , she was met with a musty scent . Her nose caught wisps of old brick walls tumbling down , leaky roofs being demolished , and dreams being knocked down . She gingerly steered her head towards the shore line , and was met with a sight to never be forgotten . Bulldozers , tractors , fire … Everything she loved , everything she knew , was destroyed . She plunged into the water once more , and this time she let the chilly water envelope her , silencing the sounds of decimation outside .
A rap of knocks woke her from the end of her reoccurring nightmare . " Ting ," a voice called out . " Auntie Ting !"
Ting sat up erect on the little bed , sweaty and distraught . For a few frantic seconds , she had thought that the air she breathed in would have the same metallic , dead taste as the so-called " Shanghai " later in her dream emitted .
Deep breath in , deep breath out . Clean air .
" Yes ," Ting replied with a quiver of relief to her voice . " What ’ s the matter ?"
The door creaked open and her niece ’ s head came to view . " You should go visit your childhood house , Auntie . They say it ’ s to be taken down in a week ."
Ting ’ s mind flashed with the spectacle of destruction , her house lit into blazing flames . She shook her head quickly , unable to escape her fright . She slid off the bed and pulled open the window , wrapping her palms around the railing as her niece ’ s footsteps down the stairs diminished . She looked down , only to see the group of elder men who were jabbering at their lousy cards , shaking them in the air with rage . The sky … Ting glanced up slowly , afraid of what she would see .
To her surprise , blue streaks painted the sky . A warm feeling inside her was reignited once more , and it was strange , since such a sensation had not been felt since decades ago . What was it called ? Yes , it was youth … it was hope … it was the bubbly feeling of Shanghai .
She inched down the creaky stairs and made her way out the door . She walked briskly , passing the group of men from earlier and another group of ladies who were gossiping over the best sales at the supermarket a block away . No time , no time , Ting jittered to herself in her mind . A sense of urgency grew in her , like a bamboo shoot rising from the dirt . I have to see it now .
She stepped foot on the busy roads , although now bustling with cars and shiny metallic vehicles , the nervous , yet excited atmosphere resembled that of the bicycle-filled roads of her own time . She passed the harbor ; while the waters now expressed a murky hue , the waves still crashed rhythmically against the backsides of boats , taking people in and out of this side of Shanghai . She turned the bend . Where the row of familiar houses used to be , now stood one lone house . Mine ? She tested . Was that … my house ?
And indeed it was . All Ting could manage to do was stand and gape from afar , the shadows of her dreams evanescing and light rays of her childhood dancing as they took over her spirit once more , memories playing and replaying like old cassette tapes in the same battered little house .
" You ’ re still here , Shanghai ," exclaimed Ting , after moments of apprehension left her once frightened heart . " You ’ re still here ."