People Always Think They Have Time
n a city that moves too quickly, one man listens—while others learn too late.
Warnings are always given. Not everyone stays to hear them.
🌧️🍜☁️⏳👂🌦️
Nasi Padang, Fishball Noodles, Satay...food was, and is, not merely sustenance in Singapore.
It's an identity.
And hawker Char Bee Hoon was being comfortable with his persona on a humid Tuesday afternoon.
Yes. The afternoon was humid.
Not languid. Just moist, holding its breath.
That Tuesday, Char faced a regular squarely as he placed an ordinary, flavorful bowl of fishball noodles on his regular's table.
"Eat first. Better not rush today."
The warning came across as habit. Glossed over habit.
And the sky had an honest look. Very honest.
A keen entrepreneur, Hawker Char made deliveries available when the weather didn't -
Conform.
But he arranged more than vermicelli deliveries. He was conversant in the weather, and made sure his customers understood the conversation.
By constantly replaying it in their ears.
Or at least tried to.
Some listened to his well-meaning advice and carried their umbrellas.
Others simply left theirs at home.
The sky was a field of clouds the next day. White against blue.
A white fluffy blanket, a veil -
Too soft.
"Better to stay here a while longer." Hawker Char's stoic warning rang quietly.
They left the food court, unsheltered.
And the sky demanded their unequivocal attention.
The rain arrived, a giant that struck, mallet raised.One of Char's regulars, wet shirt pressed against his back, finally asked.
"How do you know?"
Char smiled thinly. "People always think they have time."
The deluge repeated. Another impatient customer was about to leave without an umbrella.
But the same regular paused in his tracks.
Char smiled at him knowingly. "Yes, people always think they have time. It comes."
The giant was a regular visitor. Char always warned -
"Better to stay a while longer. I fried more bee hoon today."
Nothing forced his customers to listen. Not even the rain.
🌧️🍜⏳☁️👣🌦️
An Orignal piece of microfiction for World Meterological Day by Michelle Liew Tsui-Lin. AI tags are coincidental.
For Mikeydred's March prompt
About the Creator
Michelle Liew Tsui-Lin
Hi, i am an English Language teacher cum freelance writer with a taste for pets, prose and poetry. When I'm not writing my heart out, I'm playing with my three dogs, Zorra, Cloudy and Snowball.
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Comments (1)
It's so true, we always think we have more time for people and opportunities to be appreciative and grateful. And sometimes it's just too late. Love your fables, Michelle!