On the early morning of July 12, 2017, my younger son brought home a group of his juniors to stay overnight. They needed the peer support as they might go their separate ways hours later. It reminded me of the summer morning in 1971, when my good friend and I went from our homes in the New Territories (NT) to the Principal's home in Kowloon to get the results of our Hong Kong Certificate of Education Examination.
Although the grades I got were well below my expectations, I was eligible to apply for a place in the Hong Kong University (HKU) matriculation class. My good friend failed, but he insisted in accompanying me to find schools. I knew his so doing would cause him emotional pain and breeding, but it should be better than letting him feel rejected all alone.
Having gone to a couple of private schools and submitted applications, we went our separate ways. I knew deep down that the high school fees, travelling time and lunch costs would render any offer unreal. Fortunately, a Government secondary school in Yuen Long, NT, later admitted me to its new matriculation class, allowing me to pay half of the monthly school fee at HK$10 and even letting me have a book grant of HK$200!
In 1973, although I passed the HKU matriculation examinations, I was not admitted to study English Literature. I tried again in 1974, and was again rejected, hurting deeply my self esteem. To fight against the negative thinking, I forced myself to focus on my daytime housing management work, to attend evening classes in French and to learn driving; and with longer-term action plans and perseverance, I won a Government scholarship to read Law at HKU in 1981!