An Episode

Klin Cheng
Mar, 1986 finished
Sep, 2011 typed out

It happened somewhat expectantly. At the beginning, she was just like other customers of the little restaurant, who came to the place mainly for daily meals. But, what was distinctive of her was that, after some time, the visit made by her suddenly became a daily one. The unusual phenomenon impressed the boss deeply—after all, among all his guests, she was the only one that showed interests in almost everything offered in the store. How shall this particular event be explained? Is it that the girl simply enjoys all the foods served by the dining house? Maybe, but the boss, a psychology major-turned cook, wouldn’t take it that way. He thought that there must be something fantastic behind the frequent patronage. That interested him. 

The girl, on her first appearance, didn’t prove that she had the charm to draw the attention of any beauty admirers. With her glasses and, sometimes, shorts and slippers on, she looked not particularly attractive. You can’t tell from her casual dressings that she could be a gorgeous lady. The only thing clear then was that she was endowed with a well-proportioned stature and a suave manner, which, to tell the truth, was a little bit sensually-arousing. 

That’s the first impression left by her upon the self-employed cook, who happened to be an aesthetically cultivated fellow. It never occurred to him that a surprising appearance change would show on her in her later visits to the eatery. What occupied him at the time was her constantly- changed orders of food. He knew that, in serving such a customer, the problem is you can’t always prepare a new food that fits in both price and taste to a particular customer. The limitation prevents the possibility of a loyal gourmand and anticipates the short-lived non-absence showing of her. 

Now, she no longer ranked first among the frequenters of the eating house. However, it seemed she still took the place as one where she could enjoy food to her stomach’s content. Occasionally, she would come to take her lunch alone or with her friends. Each time she made her appearance, she never failed to arouse the cook’s intention to answer his inner question: Who and what the girl is? Yet, despite the many encounters and the several-months acquaintance, she remained as mysterious as ever. Still, not a bit of personal information was divulged from her. 

The ignorance persisted. And the business of the restaurant went on. At a time, the boss was so busy that he almost got no time to take special care of her. On such occasions, he always regretted his failure to do so, because, in his mind, he had the willingness to show his concern over her. He even longed for presenting her something new—not food again, but some intellectual and affective aspects of him—hoping to turn the greeting exchanges between them into a communication of two minds.  

While he was waiting for the opportunity to make enquiry about the girl, an unbelievable transformation happened. Several days before the Chinese Lunar New Year, she came to the store again. This time, the sight of her was so marvelous that he nearly got dumfounded. Before him was an elegant lady who greeted him with a smile. He couldn’t believe his eyes. But the phenomenon was as real as you were born. With her glasses off, make-up on, and hairs cut short, the once No.1 customers of his was already a raving beauty that, you may say, looked somewhat like Pen, Baobao, the famous Hong Kong TV star who plays the leading role in the CTS-produced soap opera “Yang, Yu-Huan”. 

The new image haunted him and reinforced his original expectation of her, who had now become a target of his interpersonal interests and intellectual thinking. But, despite all his wishes, he hesitated to tell her all about this. The worry is that, as a cook, he can’t convince others that he is capable of playing the mental thing. People just won’t believe that you are worthy of what you claim unless you demonstrate so to them. Being a writer that produced no work, the restaurant operator wouldn’t take the danger of being considered “high-falutin”. He had to keep his cook identity as a low-keyed cover for his artistic pursuit. The mask won’t be taken off until he makes sure that the woman for whom he is seeking is bright enough to enjoy the pabulum offered by him just as she has the good taste to appreciate the delicious food served in his store. 

The waiting for the revelation of the secrets of the girl finally came to the end when she, still brilliantly dressed, made another appearance of her some fortnight after the Chinese Lunar New Year. It was about 2.00p.m. All the customers had finished their lunches. And nobody else remained inside the dining room. Such was exactly the hoped-for occasion for him to ask something about her. And the answers came out immediately. She, a native of Puli, was employed by Howard Plaza Hotel as a receptionist, which is a job against her original wish but suitable for her. Finishing her college education at National Chen Kung University as a computer major, she, like the cook, had lived in Tainan, the city famous for all its “Xiao Chi” (casual eating), for four years. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why she liked his food so much. Having this in common, he found it easier to undertake chatting with her. In her talking, he could feel all the soft and tender temperament typical of a feminine, which made his admiration of her as acute as a lover’s heart. To the lady with whom he wanted to hold communion, what else can he do but telling her his mind? 

So, the first step was made out. Whether it will lead to the internal world of the blessed girl or not, his commitment to her as a source of artistic creation will always be the same. If the mental efforts can’t be correctly interpreted or significantly accepted, he requests that they be taken as a sign of friendship at least. Maybe one fine day he will have a big name or a thriving career—who knows? But, no matter what his fate will be, one thing he is sure: He would rather have the delight of winning a girl’s favor than enjoy the glory of his personal success. That’s his wish—all time wish. 

Now, as a conclusion of this self-presentation, he sets forth: “Believe it or not, I’m a doctor of human souls and a supplier for human needs.” 

p.s.: This is the episode that unleashed the writing of my poem “To Miss X”