How “Crying in H Mart” made me cry for reconciliation — Never in a million years did I imagine I would cry while doing leisure reading. For a few days in a row, I found myself totally losing it reading Crying in H Mart on the couch, in the comfort of my home. As I reached Chapter 10: Living and Dying…

And how it shaped my worldview I woke up to a pleasant surprise this morning. Finally, with a bit of luck (and was still confused about how the system works), I received the notification about my first COVID-19 vaccination that will happen this week. It took me a while to…

My reflections on where I was born and how I learned about roots — A few months ago, I brought home 《流俗地》and other books to pass to my 79-year-old aunty. Fast forward to about 2 weeks ago, she returned the book to me when I arrived home. She told me that the Malaysian author has won the year’s biggest award and I was keen…

In search for the answer, we came together — I had the pleasure to participate in the inaugural Medium Day. On the evening of August 12, 2023, Patsy Fergusson, Aza Y. Alam, Suma Narayan, and I talked from the hearts, of the women we identified with, trying to answer the overarching question. Our time zones span from GMT+10 to…

From Virginia Woolf to Orlando — A name or an identity? — Adeline Virginia Stephen. Does it ring a bell? To understand the institution behind this name-changing experience, I turned to some evidence hidden in the academic aisles. According to a research in 1994, only 2% of US women retained their last names against the patronymical norm. …

Life cannot be proofread by others; we can only read through it in earnest — I thought I was going to read about solitude, misogyny, and romance in the city. Fuyuko Irie was more than a person living with solitude. Solitude could be a personal choice. In a different way, loneliness may be forced on to you due to your nonconformity and hostility (loneliness due…

A poem modeled after lyrics of Winter Sleep by IU — Today is the first day of Spring on the lunar calendar. I have been itching for words after spending days in my stuffy chamber being a vintner of academic journals. 😫 Four lines were chosen from one of IU’s latest releases — Winter Sleep. Being one of the most prolific…

A message from nature and a reminder to change — During the weekend of December 18-19, 2021, multiple cities in Malaysia were hit by the worst flood of this decade. On that Saturday night, I saw a photo of Hallasan, the highest mountain standing in Jeju Island, South Korea, covered in snow. The people in Seoul enjoyed themselves in the…

How this dark melodrama cooked up a storm called “The Price of Everything” — I am not entirely sure how many Korean TV series I have consumed since May 2020. I am pretty sure that I have not come across a story as ravaging as Reflection of You. To make things worse for the audience, the acting of the leads were super convincing. 😰…