Of two people with high self-esteem

There’s much could be said of people with high self esteem.

The week before last, I attended my friends’ graduation ceremony. Yes, I was impressed (and tumpang bangga) with Daud who topped the Dean’s List as well as acted as the Class of 2007’s valedictorian (a role usually reserved for Japanese student, or so claimed Pokcik who had attended 5 graduation ceremonies previously but had never witnessed any non-Japanese valedictorian until last week). Daud worked hard, and it came as no surprise to see him maintaining 4.0 CGPA from his first semester until the end.

On the other hand, I was equally impressed with Masa-san – who entered Waseda the same time with Daud, but did not graduate.

So, well, what is so impressive with someone who did not earn enough credits to graduate, then, huh?

I did not know Masa-san before this, but I was impressed that despite his failure to graduate, he attended the graduation ceremony, taking time to celebrate his friends’ successes and congratulated them in person.

“Kalau kita, mesti tak datang dah. Malu. Tak tau nak jawab apa kalau orang tanya kenapa tak graduate sekali…” a fellow Malaysian confessed.

But not Masa-san. While he showed appreciation for others who graduate, apparently he set another rules for himself. So, he did not graduate, it doesn’t make him any lesser person. Self-esteem is not necessarily built upon the experience of success; it could also be built upon the maturity and acceptance of oneself. He was there for his friends, he was okay with his own 'failure' and if there are people who found his presence puzzling, then so be it. He had no problem with it. Not graduating after two years doesn’t hinder him from standing tall and keep smiling.

That was really impressive.

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The other day, I was cycling home when I chanced upon a girl riding a jinriki-sha (rickshaw). Tourists riding jinriki-sha, pulled by a man such as this ojisan is a common sight in Asakusa, but there are a lot of younger, lithe, good looking (and English speaking) jinriki-sha pullers around. As it was during the obon season, and a lot of people were on natsu yasumi (summer holiday), there were an increase of tourists sightseeing on jinriki-sha then.

It seemed as though the girl, in her twenties clad in a nice yukata, might be flirting with her jinriki-sha puller, an attractive guy in his twenties. It doesn’t matter that she belongs to the plus size. Not merely in ‘size-12-is-fat’ plus size, but rather closer to celebrity Murakami Tomoko’s size, almost double the size of her jinriki-sha puller. But at that particular moment, it appeared as if her size mattered little, if at all – she was smiling happily, bantering merrily, occasionally giggling – all in all, clearly enjoying herself.

That was quite a memorable sight.