Tick, tock, tick, tock, I watch as the hands slowly track towards the end of the school day. As I nervously drum my pencil in rhythm with the ticking clock. I stare out the window thick with fog, watching the rain trickle down the windowpane. The teacher’s distant words were heard but not absorbed like a familiar song heard on the radio.

All of a Sudden, I hear the school bell ring. Jumping excitedly out of my chair, I race quickly down the hall then through the big iron gates of the school grounds. I hear one of my friends shout out to me “Good Bye May”. I swivelled around and flashed her a smile which mimics my happy mood. I quickly run down to the bike rack where my favourite pink push bike is, just so excited in anticipation of my grandmas steaming bowl of spicy noodles, waiting on the long kitchen table for me to arrive home. I am always ravenous after school.

On the way home, I passed food stalls and shops selling all kinds of steamed buns and fried dumplings. There sweet aroma tickling my nose as I peddle past. The fragrant sticky smell reminded me of my Mum’s delicious pork buns she would always pack for me to bring to school when I was younger. This is a memory I hold very dear to my heart; now my mother no longer waits for me at home.
I was only five years old when both my parents never returned home on a night so dark and stormy in my memory. My Grandmother never disclosed what really happened to my parents and I was too young to attend their funeral. So it is often moments like this when a familiar smell triggers a memory from the past and reminds me of the parents I lost long ago.

“Hello May” I finally reach home and hear my grandma’s voice coming from the kitchen. I look into the kitchen and see her fiddling with the antique Chinese cupboard that was passed down through generations. It has carved images depicting ancient characters from china’s long history which were painted in gold leaf.

“How was school today?” she asked me in her usual high pitched voice. “Oh, school? Boring as usual” I replied. “What can be so interesting about school?” I questioned myself.

I take a hungrily slurp and answer my grandmother with a mouth full of slippery noodles. Inhaling the hot steamy soup with each mouth full, finishing the last strips of noodles, I quickly unpack my school materials and headed upstairs to complete the history assignment I was given.

I crept up the old steep wooden stairs, avoiding the cracks that were left long ago, I think about how many past generations have climbed these stairs before I have as, I walk past pictures of long dead ancestors from my family tree lining the stair case.

I heard my grandma’s voice from below echoing up the stairs. ”Are you ok”? “Yeah I’m fine” I yelled back, “I’m just going down to the markets” I hear her reply “Don’t do anything that will cause you trouble” she adds to her sentence in a vigorous tone.
On the way to my grandma’s bedroom, I push open the creaking door, suddenly noticing the antique cupboard that I saw my grandmother fixing earlier. A strange light suddenly caught my attention. I glance across to the source of light. I’m drawn to a star like glow appearing in the far distance just glimmering. I look sideways hoping that no one is around; as I take one step silently tip toing, moving my way towards the shiny object, which drew me closer. I think to myself as I creep closer to the source of light, what could this be? But curiosity catches me and the only way to find out is to move bravely forward and the mystery will be revealed.

The view of the shiny object becomes clearer I soon to realise that it appears to be a small iron box, that had different types of symbols depicting unhappiness, all sorts of Chinese characters which were painted in the brightest gold found in the entire town, a large green piece of jade was carved into a symbol of a dragon with five claws. In Chinese mythology the dragon with five claws is a symbol of royalty and forbidden