The House at the Edge of Magic

A girl was outside a butcher’s shop. She saw a woman…a beautiful woman. This woman had scarlet hair wearing a scarlet dress, a scarlet bag and scarlet shoes. The woman was about to go inside but-

The girl pounced and held onto the bag. But the butcher caught her in the nick of time. 

This girl is no ordinary girl. Her name is Nine and she is an orphan pickpocket with nothing to her name. She seemed pretty disappointed when the butcher caught her. 

I wonder why…

Nine went back to an alley, where she stopped at the Nest of a Thousand Treasures and whispered “No Strawberries Today”.

Pockets, a man who found Nine when she was an orphan.

Pockets had found Nine and other thieves for they were orphans, but he greedily asked for something in return from all of them: To steal and get something nice for him. 

Nine immediately got upset again at the thought.

Pockets immediately reminded her that if he hadn’t picked Nine up to his Nest, then she would be alone, on the streets…

The next day, Nine was looking everywhere for something to pick, but she saw the same scarlet haired woman with the scarlet bag.

Nine’s eyes goggled as she looked at her prey. She was ready…

POUNCE!

But this time, the woman was ready. She held her bag tight as many people ran to catch Nine.

Nine quickly fell into the woman and reached in her bag and found an ornament inside. She plucked it inside her satchel and ran for her life.

Finally, Nine is alone. She took out the ornament, only to find out that it was a mini house. She blinked once and she saw a door knocker on the door.

Nine, feeling pretty childish, knocked. 

She laughed and put the house on the ground, but as she was about to leave, she saw the house…growing?

Yes! The house grew until full size. It had nine, ten, eleven floors!

Nine went in and she was introduced to Flabberghast (a wizard with auburn hair and an ancient sense), Eric (a troll), and Dr. Spoon (a spoon with high, qualifying grades, who is in search for his partner, Professor Dish and, weirdly, wearing a kilt).

They were extremely happy that she knocked, which only made Nine more astonished than she was at that moment.

Flabberghast explained that his sister, a very powerful witch, put a curse to this house and him, which included: Taking the wizard’s powers away; making any clothes they wear turn into a different color every ten minutes; putting different places if they went out the backyard; and not allowing the residents inside to get out. 

Nine was able to get in and out whenever she wanted to, because she did not live there, which also made out a point that she was able to lift the curse.

Flabberghast showed her a letter that his sister gave him when the curse was put. Nine read it and the letter said that they had to say the magic words-

-but there weren’t any.

Flabberghast pointed out that they had to give something that they most loved.

The wizard gave his trophy (for hopscotch), Eric gave his most loveable duster, Dr. Spoon gave his kilt, and Nine…

Nine pulled out her music box. It was the only thing her parents gave her before she was left in the streets. 

They all put it inside the wizard’s old cauldron before Nine went back ‘home’.

The next day, Nine went back but there was still nothing new.

Suddenly, a few minutes later, words began to fill the cauldron:

SONG WIN WAR.

Flabberghast immediately said it…

…but nothing happened. 

In sudden bang, the back door started shaking and Nine went to the door. Ignoring her friends’ warnings, she opened the door.

To fall down a big black VOID!

Flabberghast, Eric, and Dr. Spoon immediately went down to fetch her, but the witch was already there.

Flabberghast’s sister, the witch who put the curse on the house, was standing there with her ancestors. Nine thought that she looked familiar…

She warned them that if her brother doesn’t say the magic words in time, they will cease to exist.

Nine figured out that the witch only gave the letters. She eventually arranged it into…

I WAS WRONG.

Flabberghast, dreading to say it, said it at last.

The witch, disgruntled, snapped her fingers.

The curse was broken! After 20 years.

Nine got to live there and she didn’t need to steal for her living now. She hadn’t got to go back to Pockets’ Nest anymore. She was happy now 🙂

The End.

Epilogue

A woman with a scarlet bag, scarlet shoes and scarlet hair knocked on the door of The Nest of a Thousand Treasures.

She whispered “No Strawberries Today”.

Pockets opened the door.

The woman told him that Nine will not be in nest anymore.

Why?

Because Pockets is wrong. Life does bring you strawberries. And Pockets is left confused.

The woman didn’t look back but smiled.

“Consequences.” muttered the Witch, Flabberghast’s sister, and she grinned more broadly.And may their adventures last forever…

:: end of story ::

From POSI to LEGO

Remember that time when I won a gold medal in an Olympiade (second time). 

Well…for the record, I also got MONEY! The one before only got an amount of Rp500.000,00.  But this time, was much better. I got an amount of Rp750.000, 00! :):):)

I was soooo happy and Mum and Dad agreed to get or buy something using it! I already knew what I wanted. It was something that I haven’t had in a long time. Something that I love (until now) and something which I usually take to build something new out of it.

You guessed it right: LEGO. 😉

It was just Mum and I first, and I had soooo many suggestions!

I immediately took out my I-Pad and opened the LEGO app. I saw many LEGOs there, including LEGO Friends, LEGO City, LEGO Disney, LEGO creators, etc. And, luckily, it was on discount!

I searched Disney, but at that time, they were celebrating Disney 100, so everything there was at least Rp1.000.000,00!.

I had no intention in LEGO city, and obviously NO intention in creators (puh-please! I can create my own, thank you very much!). 

LEGO Friends, here I come! Of course, there was a new LEGO Friends behind the camera: LEGO Friends, A new chapter! I wanted to get one of those. And finally, I chose Autumn’s House. The house is a country house with nice green tiles and literally…

It’s all. About. Nature. So…yeah! Definitely.

We didn’t buy it as soon as we could, because we had to get Dad’s permission. On Tuesday, I finally asked him. We were all watching TV, and he was really absorbed into it, so, pretty impatiently, I waited until there was an advert. Dad took a look and didn’t really approve. 

I was pretty upset. Dad showed a LEGO Rocket, but this time, I was the one that didn’t approve. I mean, the rocket had only 500 something pieces! Whilst Autumn’s house has nearly 900! When I told him this, he finally did approve.

Happily, we bought it! We weren’t really expecting to come until Christmas, because it was sent from Jakarta, which is pretty far away.

However, surprisingly, three days later, a big parcel was waiting for us! :). We didn’t get our hopes up, until we opened it…AND IT WAS MY LEGO! While I was admiring it, my parents took a look at the label and saw that they took a shortcut and sent it from Medan! Pretty smart don’t you think?

I wanted them to wrap it up so it could be a Christmas present, but my parents refused, because they said that they were wanting to get something else. Hmm?

The next day, I immediately open it and build it! There were six packs, and it took my almost four hours to finish it. I was happy that it was worth it, and I got my first ever LEGO Friends: The New Chapter LEGO set! It goes with four mini-figures, one dog and one horse.

Autumn is a teen girl that was born with a limb difference, but over all, she always goes on adventures and loves volunteering at the adoption centre!

Aliya is teen girl that is always tidy and is head girl of her school. She is the leader of the group and keeps thing on schedule (she sounds like Mum 🙂 )

Leo is a teen boy that loves cooking and sports. He has a very rush of gratitude to Autumn and he always helps out with her for animals too!

Mia is Autumn’s Mum, and yes, it is the same Mia from our first LEGO Friends: Girl on a Mission. She is the housekeeper of her house and loves baking pies as much as loves her daughter!

Daisy is Autumn’s dog who loves Mia’s pies.

Peanut is Autumn’s horse who is also the foal of Mia’s old horse: Bella.

It is one of the biggest sets I’ve ever had, and now, I always play with it.

Thanks Mum and Dad, and also to myself for earning the LEGO. And big thank you to POSI for making kids earn what they deserve!

~Agatha~

The Olympiade…

On December 2nd, 2023, I joined an Olympiade (again!).

I woke up, and I was thoroughly excited, and calm overall. I was going to be joining two subjects Math and English.

I wanted to join IPA (biology/science) first, before getting the big step on Math, but never mind. I ate breakfast quickly, and set all my stuff.

I took three 2b pencils, one eraser, one ruler, and my clipboard. I put them all in a sack-bag (not a backpack, because the Olympiade was near home), and went to the canteen with Dad to wait for it to start.

Of course, students from many school around and near Toba were already here. It was really crowded, also because the security wouldn’t let us in.

Both Math and English were being held there, so there were two charts of names that were joining; English (left) and Math (right).

My name was on both of the charts. It was easy to find it because it was and “A” for “Agatha.

Sure thing, in less than ten minutes, we were allowed to get in. Math was first. 

Only students were allowed to get in. I waved at Dad by the window, before seeing on my right…

That my friend Danish was also there! 

He’s also pretty clever, different class, but I know him, because his “marga” is the same as mine. 

In the hours of the work, I only understood a few. I thought that it was like an exam, so answered everything. But, because I was pretty unsure, I emptied the two last answers.

Finally, after what seemed a lifetime, it finished and I drank, a ton of water. It was soooo hot and I chug it down, until, I get inside again to join English.

I went to my exact same seat as I was in Math, and I was finally by myself.

I see a few of my friends. The ones who live near me, and also the ones that go to the same school.

When I looked to the first question, I burrowed my eyebrows.

I already knew that the questions were pretty easy. I managed to answer all of them.

I went to the toilet, and as I did, I caught a glimpse of most my friends from school, and not.

But when I arrived at the toilet, the girls toilet was so crowded and packed. Because of that, I had to go out and wait for it to end 🙁

After an hour ½, we got out.

I was very happy that was over, also because I really needed to go the toilet.

My friend from school wanted to visit my house, but she had to get her Mum’s permission, so she looked around for her.

Meanwhile, I caught Mum and her friends sitting near the parking lot.

As Mum gave me chocolate, her friends kept saying She’s definitely gonna win or just put her in the front, she’ll win anyways.

I was like, ‘Geez, stop!’ But I just said that in my mind so no one else heard it but me.

We wanted to go the entrance hall, but it was packed, so we went back to the canteen instead. 

There, Mum and I played an ABC game, while waiting for our lunch to come. Whilst waiting, I finally went to the toilet, and it wasn’t crowded anymore 🙂

After we finish, we immediately went to the Auditorium for the announcement. We got in, but it was still IPA. We got out again…

…but it seems as if there was no way back in.

We waited for more than half an hour, before they let us in for the English announcement.

I dunno how, but I had to the toilet then. 

But as I do, I had a fit while trying to get back in. The assistant wasn’t there, so I had to push my way through and jump over the railings to get back inside.

Sure enough, it was worth it.

It was already silver, and they hadn’t called my name yet. All of my friends have been called though!

But my heart stopped racing as they announced the gold prize.

ME!

I couldn’t really hear it, because the microphone was cracking up, but, me!!!

I was very happy. I got a gold medal and money too (I’ve already agreed with Mum and Dad to use it to get new Lego).

Even though I didn’t get math, I know that when I try again, I’ll do better and I’ll promise to always keep improving to get a better score in the olympiade 🙂

Well at least I know how the questions will be like…

Luv, 

Agatha Simanjuntak

Secrets at Malory Towers

Felicity Rivers was going back to boarding school on the train with her best friend, Susan. They both had just gotten astonishing news from Miss Grayling, Headmistress of Malory towers. 

Felicity was to be Head Girl that year and Susan was to be her deputy, giving the Head Girl her duties.

Felicity’s sister, Darrel, also was Head Girl in her last term as well. She knew that their cousin, Alicia, had also been deputy too.

As they went out they met their friend, June Johns. She congratulated them, very pleased.

Felicity and Susan had to go to Miss Grayling’s office to get their badges while June left them to go to their dormitory. As they got there, Miss Grayling was waiting for them with another student, called Alice. She had glasses, but either way, she looked quite familiar. Without knowing, Susan escorted Alice to the dormitory, ignoring Felicity’s remarks. 

Still, even June thought she looked very familiar. 

As Alice was sleeping, her glasses slipped pretty downwards.  Felicity, June and Susan were still awake. As Susan saw Alice she noticed it…

The next day was just as confusing. Alice kept doing everything anyone told her, like a servant.

As their classes started, Alice knew everything, even though she claimed to have been home schooled ever since. 

In the evening, they met Violet, a spoilt girl who boasts about everything. She met Alice, and then she started showing off what she had done in her summer term. Felicity, Susan, and June looked away pointedly.

As they went back their dorm, they bumped into Daphne Hope. Trust me, you do not want to bump into her at school. Daffy they call her, honestly. She was with her friend Katie.  Katie was a friend of a fake friend who is a very fake friend. Daffy looked at us roughly, then she turned at her heels, nose in the air, Katie following behind.

Next month, they had swimming lessons, and after they had finished, Felicity, Susan, June and Alice were still swimming. Violet was giggling in her swimsuit, but she hadn’t swam yet. She suddenly started boasting that her house had an indoor pool. Daffy and Katie, who were still there, told Violet to come in and show some tricks. Violet refused, but Daffy pulled her in, followed by Alice, who Violet had clutched onto before pulled in. Felicity and Susan helped to get Alice as June dove down to fetch Violet. 

Of course Daffy was given a punishment, to not go to the following garden party that week. Her friend, Katie, was very sad indeed, but at the Garden party, something else happened.

At the garden party, everyone was beautiful looking, in the gowns, and a few wore makeup. Daffy was nowhere to be seen. Everyone was happy, except for Katie, who seemed very subdued of the absence of her friend. Violet, was boasting that she had been to many garden parties before. A few didn’t believe it, but many did. Violet kept showing off and off until it became a downright lie. 

Alice then pulled Violet into a quiet place and whispered to her to not boast all the time. Felicity caught them, and she recognized the same familiar face as her friends..

*** 

Violet didn’t seem too much. She looked at her pet cat that she brought, but she didn’t look at her back. She knew she had to hide it. She was still in her first form, but as brave as she was, she sneaked out and hid her cat in the garden shed. All may seem right, until Daffy knew everything. It was official: Brought by Katie.

Daffy got her matches and burned down the shed! Naughty and deceitful, she ran off back to bed, scared.

Violet who was still awake at the moment, saw the shed’s flames and rushed downstairs. She was rescuing her cat! She found dear Willow, sprawled on the floor, meowing in terror. Violet, too got stuck. 

Suddenly, a girl came and saw them.  It was Alice! Alice rescued Violet and Willow, and Daffy was expelled by Miss Grayling. There’s only one more thing left to sort out in here:

Alice.

Felicity gave Alice a bouquet of roses, as she gave herself away. Alice was Josephine ‘Jo’ Jones. She had been at Malory Towers since they were in first form, but got expelled in their second, for running away with a first former. She had been described to be boastful, naughty, mischievous, and deceitful. Still, Miss Grayling, allowed her to come back, as the change in her.

Many secrets were to be solved that year, and maybe next too?

Shhh…

:: EOF ::

Anne of Green Gables

An old man was at the train station one morning. He wasn’t married, but he lived with his sister.

He went to the train station to pick up a boy that he and his sister adopted. He was in such a hurry. The caretaker of the orphanage (Mrs Spencer) told him that she would take the boy to the train station at Green Gables.

He was very late when he got there. He looked all around for the boy, but his eyes couldn’t find him. Suddenly, a young girl came up to him and asked if his name was Matthew Cuthbert. Fortunately, it was. The girl was called Anne Shirley. She had burning, red, straight hair. Her mouth and eyes were huge and her face was pale.

She told him that she was left by Mrs Spencer. This puzzled Matthew, but he led her back home. It was a long way back to their house and they were very late for lunch. Matthew’s sister, Marilla Cuthbert didn’t say anything at first. But as Anne was eating lunch, Marilla was very angry at Matthew. 

She asked a thousand questions based on the young boy they were supposed to adopt. Anne overheard this and became very sad and frustrated. She ran away as quick as she could afterwards, to Nova Scotia where Mrs Spencer’s house for girls were.

That night Matthew and Marilla Cuthbert looked everywhere for Anne, but sadly, she wasn’t to be found. Matthew suggested that he’d go back to Nova Scotia, in case she went back there. Marilla disagreed retortedly, but after a while, she let him go. 

Matthew went to the train station and went straight back to Nova Scotia where Anne was.

Meanwhile, the redheaded girl held her satchel nervously as she knocked on the door of the house, but there was no answer. She became very tired and fell asleep.

The next morning, she found the milkman putting some milk on the doorstep. He offered her a lift to the village, which she agreed constantly.

Matthew had reached the village where she was at. He looked absolutely everywhere for Anne, but there was nothing.  Suddenly, the church bells rung the village, saying it was the end of church. He thought quickly, and went to the church. People were chatting with each other, and even giving money.  Matthew searched for Anne. He suddenly felt a pang of stupidest feelings and pity of that if Anne wasn’t there. As he was about to get out, his eyes caught the attention of a child with platted red hair talking to with the priests if they knew the way to the closest train station.

It was Anne! Matthew asked her to join him, but Anne rejected at first, saying that they don’t love her, or want her. But as she knew, that she had nowhere else to go, she agreed. Marilla was waiting for them and hugged them in delight. She agreed to adopt Anne and care for her.

The next week, she invited Anne to go and see her friend. Anne was delighted to go. Marilla’s friend was called Mrs Barry. She had two children called Diana and Minnie. They greeted and welcomed them inside.  Diana and Anne immediately became bests of friends. Diana told Anne about the school she’d be going to.

That evening, Anne told Marilla about her history. After both her parents died, she went to two families before being passed to Mrs Spencer. They were all very cruel, until she came to Marilla and Mathew.

The next day was Anne’s very first day of school. On the way, she bumped into a tall boy, named Jack. He asked her where she was going and threatened her to give her lunch. Suddenly another handsome, tall boy with black curls everywhere. He asked what Jack was doing and shooed him away. He and Anne’s eyes met, before Anne remembered that she was going to school.  She carried her stuff and walked much faster than before, because the boy was following her and calling for her name.

As they arrived at Avonlea School, the boy raced in front of Anne and opened the door for her. Anne apologized for her behaviour before, and introduced herself. The young boy’s name was Gilbert Blythe. Just as they were chatting, the rest of the boys pulled Gilbert out of Anne’s sight. Anne caught sight of Diana, whose mouth had opened to a gap. Diana explained to Anne that Gilbert was very romantic, handsome and really nice. He caught the eyes of most girls, but he had never went inside the class with a girl like he just did.

Two girls were disapproving, because they wanted Gilbert for themselves. Josie Pye and Ruby Gills took one glance and stalked away.

Their first subject was English. Anne was horrid at it.  Gilbert, on the other hand, was trying to make Anne look at him. First, he threw a chalk at her, but that didn’t work. When the teacher wasn’t looking, Gilbert crawled to Anne’s desk and put an apple next to her slate. He was failing so badly, to get her attention. Then, he did something incredible. He took one look at Anne’s face and tugged her hair while calling her ‘carrots’. Anne became indignant and smacked her plate at Gilbert’s head. The slate cracked in half and the teacher got very cross.

Anne began to not go to school for a few days. Then, one day, she invited Diana to tea. There were many to eat that day. They were chatting if Anne should go back to school, but Anne kept disagreeing. They were very thirsty, so Anne went to the cupboard and found wine, but she didn’t know…neither did Diana! Anne drank only one cup, but Diana drank a few. Suddenly Diana got drunk and fainted. Mrs Barry was very disapproved at this point, that she disallowed Diana to ever be with Anne forever. Anne still disagreed on going to school. Especially that she did not have Diana anymore to sit next to her.

One day she bumped into her, Josie Pye and Ruby Gills playing on the field, but Diana pretended as if Anne wasn’t even alive.

That night, Anne went to bed but screams were outside. Marilla and Matthew were carrying buckets of water. Anne was puzzled why. It was Ruby Gills house! It got caught on fire! Anne went with Marilla and Mathew out to Ruby’s house. It was blaming on fire, and the fire rescue weren’t there yet! Gilbert, the boys and even Diana had come to help. Everyone was outside safe, but the house wasn’t. 

Everyone had enough water to clear up the outside, but not in the inside. Ashes were getting bigger, and no one was able to get in. The boys, including Gilbert, ran inside to try and slow the fire down. But there was only one more bucket to spare. Anne seized her chance. She went inside and threw water all over the fire inside. People thought she was a hero. Even Gilbert admired her purity, but Anne dared not to look at him. She saw Diana, but walked away as she glanced at her.

Marilla offered a room for Ruby’s Parents, whilst Ruby sleeps with Anne. As they settled in, Anne heard Ruby sob. As she asked why, it was because that Ruby was embarrassed to be sleeping with the girl that she hated so much. They eventually talked it through, and Anne became pleased. Ruby’s house was finally mended, but Anne’s adventure still didn’t end.

Ruby and Anne were playing Elaine, and Anne climbed a tree near the river. She saw Ruby down on the ground, but Anne was very afraid of climbing down, since it was her first time playing this game. She let go and fell in the river. Suddenly she saw a boat row by, which was rowed by no other than Gilbert Blythe. He helped her get inside the boat. As Gilbert took the oars, he questioned the skinny girl, but Anne didn’t answer anything. As Anne got off, Gilbert pleaded at Anne to be good friends, but Anne declined. She ignored Ruby when she said that it was so romantic.

Suddenly next week, Matthew said that his very good friend who had been suffering a bad disease had died, and he was invited to hid funeral. Anne thought it was horribly sad that he died, because his son was the only child he had. He’d have to live with their house-keeper, but neither wise, he’d be an orphan.

After the funeral, Anne decided to meet the young boy who lost his father. But she stopped in her tracks as she saw who it was. Gilbert Blythe! He stood before his father’s grave, whilst Anne was there, heart aching for the handsome, young boy. She failed to say the things she wanted to.

The next day, as Anne went to bed, Diana broke in, carrying her little sister with her. Anne asked whatever was wrong, Diana explained that her little sister, Minnie, has the croup (asthma) very badly. Marilla and Matthew went inside and asked what was going on. Diana explained everything. Marilla suggested a doctor at downtown Avonlea, but it was the middle of the night, and it wasn’t that good just to burst in and ask for help!

Anne told Diana that her second parents had three twins and they were always in the hands of Anne. She knew what to do. She told Matthew to boil some water, and Diana to warm her sister up with warm blankets. Anne asked Marilla if they had ipecac. Splendidly, they did, and at once they gave it to Minnie, and soon, she was sound asleep, safe and sound.

That morning Mrs Barry thanked Anne for her heroic saving of Minnie. She and Diana were finally allowed to play again which was a very nice thing to hear. Anne realized that it was a pleasure to live in Green Gables after a ton of adventures she had had, and finally agreed to go back to school by ‘after Christmas’. Matthew and Marilla gifted her a puffed-sleeved dress which looked amazingly beautiful.

One day, on the way to school, Anne bumped into Gilbert. She then offered a hand… to shake. She thanked the boy for saving her at the river, and ‘sorry-s’ for his father loss. Anne told them to start over again, by introducing themselves first. As Gilbert held out his hand for Anne to shake, she hugged him, and that was the beginning of them.

~The End~

The Competition

On Wednesday 26th July 2023 I got the greatest news of my life!

Here’s the backstory:

A few months ago, my English Teacher told me about an English speech competition and asked me to join. I was stumped because usually, I wasn’t asked to do this sort of thing 🙁. Just because they never knew…until the day I won an English competition (read my writing: Third Place: Gold Medal).

Still, I was eager to join, so I chose the title “My Hero” to hit it off. I told about Mum and Dad being my Heroes. They recorded it and sent it to the judges. They said that they would announce it after my birthday.

My birthday came and it was great (read my writing about: Me and Mum’s Birthday). Still, there was nothing 🙁. That was until Wednesday 26th July 2023. I was doing an online lesson, until Mum came and said that my Deputy Head-Teacher called.  Mum asked me what I did wrong in school, which was ridiculous! Why would the Deputy Head-Teacher call my Mum like that?!

But, Mum was kidding. She told me that my Deputy Head-Teacher called to say that got nominated for the top ten to go to Medan because of my speech! He sent Mum the list, and I was amazed that I was the only one from town!!!

😀😀😀

I was sooooo happy and proud of myself. This was the first time in forever that I’ve been like this!

The next day, Thursday 27th July 2023, I still had to go to school. In the morning, my friend, who also was told to join the competition but didn’t get nominated, was the only one that knew.  She yelled “CONGRATULATIONS!!” at the top of her voice, which gave others a hint.

When we had to do some “tor-tors” in our school yard, I was called by my friends. When I looked behind, I saw my English Teacher waiting for me there. She held my hand stiffly and led me to my Deputy Head-Teacher. He took a look at me and beckoned me to the bottom of our yard. My Head-Teacher was waiting there, with my sports teacher (he’s stricter than you think) with a sharp glare.

As my Head-Teacher turned me round and round, my sports teacher was looking at me, up and down, like…BOMBASTIC SIDE EYE!!! Then, my Head-Teacher led me to her office. I had to wait there for my English Teacher who was still at the yard.

She finally came and asked me how I was feeling, because I had been ill for the past few days. I told her I was fine and better. She asked me if I still remembered my speech. I forgot a few parts…Hey! Don’t judge! It had been much longer than you think 🙁.

My English teacher printed it, and gave me five minutes to try and remember it again. It had been more than TEN MINUTES when she came back, but I was ready. After I did my speech, she gave some advice to do when I go to Medan.

I was finally ready. When Mum picked me up, I said goodbye to my teachers and went back home.

After lunch, the coach came to pick us up, and we were finally on the way.

It. Was. A. Very. Bumpy. Ride!!! And the most annoying part was when a woman couldn’t remember where she had to get off 🙁🙁🙁!!! After a phone call, she finally remembered, and went off. PHEW!

We had to call a GoCar (which is like Uber) to get to the hotel. That night a practised three more times before bedtime, which was amazingly worth it.

The next day, Friday 28th July 2023 was the day that waited me.

I dressed up quickly to go and get breakfast.  I had some yummy, warm porridge, and that was all that I ate, but like those only three practises, it was very worth it!

We took a GoCar to the Erlangga office, where I will perform. 

I started getting nervous, but I always remembered about the people who supported me: My parents, Mum’s friends, her office, even my whole school!

Finally it was time to go in, and we had to choose numbers to up to the front. I was pleased to say that I was number six. I had so much time to prepare.

Finally it was my turn. I said my speech as loudly and clearly as possible. You can watch in this link: https://youtu.be/2jryOe57gys

I knew the judges were tired, because they thought that My Hero was just Dad, but I already said clearly that it was BOTH of my parents.

Next, they decided to do some karaoke, and, unbelievably, they chose me to do the singing!I couldn’t believe it, but I couldn’t take it back. I sang Eyes Closed by Ed Sheeran. After halfway, something incredible happened. Whilst I was singing, a Chinese boy was dancing in his seat, so the judge asked him if he wanted to sing to and offered him a microphone. Weirdly, he jumped up, snatched the microphone from his hand and ran towards me singing the chorus. I was too bewildered to say anything at all!

After the break was a finished, the competition continued until everyone in the room had had at turn. The judges went off to count our scores, when the event leader told me to sing AGAIN! Honestly! He said, because my culture was Batak, I had to sing a Batak song! I chose the song “Rap”, which means together in the local language.

After I was finished, a young Middle School Girl called Grace was told to sing next, and, goodness she had such a beautiful voice as she sang, “All by Myself”.  Wonderful!!!

Finally, time was up and the judges came up to say the winners and the scores. At fourth place, there was a girl named Celine. She went to Prime One School, which was an international school, where most has to learn English.

They then said the score of the student in third place, which was 87, 78. That was an amazing score, when I heard that it was ME!!! 😀😀😀. I knew I wasn’t first place and wasn’t able to go to Jakarta for the finals, but I’ve gone THIS FAR and things have become so great. The first place student was an Indian boy named Kuhaneesh. I saw him crying as I approached him saying congrats.

Still, I loved this experience and the trophy was brilliantly big. I do hope I will get more. You too 😀😀😀

~ Agatha 😀 ~

Me & Mum’s Birthday

Friday, 14th July

Mum woke me up, with me not remembering my birthday 🙁!

But as I went out, I saw a banner, saying: Happy Birthday! And there were balloons hung above with a bouquet of all my favourite snacks (Mum doesn’t let me eat them every day, which is nonsense because she was the one to choose the snacks) sitting on my piano seat.

I soon remembered that it was my birthday.

I quickly took a bath and went to the living room to take a photo with my bouquet.

Yay! 😀😀😀! I was very happy that I got it, but I was sad that Mum, Dad, and I had to go to Dolok Sanggul to do our passports.  

It took less than two hours to get there. When we got there, we had to wait for the assistant that we told to help, but another assistant came and told us that he could help. 

“Good morning, may I help you?”

That was the first thing he said. He led us to a desk. We had to write in a few forms which I couldn’t understand, but one thing that I did, was that we had to write in our birth-date! Mine was on that day but sadly, the assistant didn’t even notice 🙁!

I was told I couldn’t smile while taking the photo and my ears had to be shown (which are usually covered by my ears). As I saw my photo, I looked horrible!

I wasn’t smiling, which was good, but I had this sort of annoyed expression, which was terrible 🙁.

We had to go back home, but I pretty liked it there because it was cold. We were halfway, when Mum says she has to go to the office. As sad I was, Mum got out and said that we’ll cut the cake that night.

“That Night” didn’t come as quick. I did a lot of stuff.

As soon as I got bored, Mum came home!

We went out with my sister for an evening stroll. Which went out relaxing. I was able to play basketball and play with my friend. 

Finally, it was time to go home. That night, we cut the cake and two other friends of mine came to give me ANOTHER CAKE!

The first cake was a BlackPink (K-Pop group) cake. The second cake was from my friends, a caramel, chocolate one. 

Went out good, and we gave a few pieces of cake to my friends.

A few minutes later, a friend of mine, Lianzki, gave me a gift, which turned out to be a night light (thanks!).

Finally, my Birthday was finished, and I had a great day 😀😀!!! 

BUT!!! After three days, a package came…

It was from my huggy-friend from England, Sara 😀😀😀!!!!

I’ve told you guys about her (you guys should read my article: A special from my Huggy Friend and it will tell you all about her).

She literally sent two magazines that I used to read when I was England, and I take as another present 😁.

There also was another envelope with a birthday card for Mum, which was in two days.

Stay tuned.

👇👇👇

Tuesday 18th July

I woke up knowing it was Mum’s birthday. I loved it when it was someone else’s birthday because I get to do all the planning 😀. Dad and I had already planned it ever since a week ago. We pretty love it when it’s like this. Pretty good right?

We made a prayer from Mum when we were in the car when I was going to school and Mum had to go to work.

She didn’t really expect anything, but Dad and I were up to something 😀.

School was done for, because we just finished our holiday. We had to do timetables but happily, the next day was a holiday, so, no pressure 😀!

I went straight home though, which meant that I couldn’t stay with mum that long.

Waiting for me at home was mom’s birthday cake, heart shaped rose cake. I peeked at it and saw that it was beautiful!

Dad went home and started off eating lunch as usual, but a few minutes, he told about the plan to make Mum’s birthday a blast!

Me and Dad would pick mom up and buy roses for her. I would hide in the back and surprise her. 

I thought that it would good, but I had an online lesson and I had to do it in the car 🙁. 

Luckily, it was also finished in the car, which gave me time to go with dad to get some roses.

We were lucky enough to get three roses, one from each of us: Me, Dad and my little sister.

Afterwards we went to Mum’s office to pick her up. I hid in the back to surprise.

Usually, Mum would go to the back to put her bag there, but luckily she didn’t.

I was ready to surprise her…

But things weren’t as planned 🙁.

She saw me hiding, and laughed. Even Dad laughed, and so did I.

We kissed her and gave her the flowers. She fell in love with them.

We stopped at KFC to get some dinner and burgers, whilst do my second lesson.

I don’t know why they bother anyway.

Only Mum went in, and it took pretty long (no offense).

Overall, the burger was pretty good! I loved it because it was crispy chicken.

I finished my lesson, and we finally got to cut the cake.

She blew out the candles. We all got a piece (especially my sister, because she was starving!).

Mum also loved it. I loved the roses because it gave sugar rush.

I saw Mum’s face happy. She must’ve loved the surprise (even though it wasn’t really a good one).

Happy B’Day Mum, we love you!

~ Agatha. S 😊~

A special from My Huggy Friend

~ Saturday 17th June, 2023~

I just got back from school. 

Dad was fixing my window, because I got a new bed; Mom was helping by cleaning.

I was playing with Charlotte, my sister, when suddenly, Mom told me to tidy up my room.

I got up and started with my desk.

Suddenly, a security guard delivered a package, which was for Mom.

It was just a pair of pyjamas.

But I was disappointed. I had been waiting for two months for an envelope, from my old friend, Sara.

She’s a nice woman who we use to meet at the church back in Sheffield, England. I miss her dearly.

We have lots of other friends back in England, but she’s our “huggy friend”.

I was halfway cleaning, until the same security guard knocked on our door.

In fact, however, he had another big package from Adidas for Me, Mom and Dad.

He also had an envelope. 

As I read it, it was for:

Miss. A. Simanjuntak (that’s me 😀)

Which meant that it was from Sara!

And what was best, was that there was a valuable stamp of King Charles, King of the United Kingdom. 

Sara had explained to us in an email, that she would be sending the stamp, for it would be very valuable and expensive when I’m older.

And what was amazingly surprising, was that…IT WAS DELIVERED ON KING CHARLES’ BIRTHDAY 😀😀😀!

You all might not know about it (or even about himself!), but here’s some information (about the parade):

King Charles had a trooping parade for is Birthday.

The traditional military spectacle today is a parade that isn’t like any other parade that had happened. 

King Charles’ real birthday is on November the 14th and is usually celebrated privately with the royal family. 

It is called “Trooping the Colour” which Queen Elizabeth used to celebrate. Now as her majesty has passed on, it is now led onto her majesty, King Charles.

1,500 soldiers, 300 horses and hundreds of musicians marched from Buckingham palace to the Parade.

It was seen by the whole Royal Family (well, except Prince Harry and Meghan. By the way, did you know that Prince Harry’s real name is Henry???).

There hasn’t been a parade like this for 40 years!

The last time a reigning monarch rode in the procession was Queen Elizabeth II in 1986.

King Charles also joined by riding a horseback closely followed by Prince William and the rest.

A carriage closely followed nearby, carrying Queen Camila, Princess Catherine “Kate” Middleton, Prince George, Princess Charlotte (she’s the one we were inspired to name my sister: Charlotte), and Prince Louis 😀.

Then, King Charles went up to the balcony to enjoy the aircraft with the rest of the royal family (Queen Camila Bowler, Princess Catherine “Kate” Middleton, Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis).

Overall, it might be coincidence?

I loved it so much, especially that it was from Sara.

Here’s some things about her:

She’s a nice woman who we use to meet at the church back in Sheffield, England. I miss her dearly.

She wears thin glasses and has silky brown hair.

We always email her, and she emails us too. We also call her too by skype. All the ways to keep in touch.

We flew back to Indonesia (where I am now) three years ago, March 2020. Before that, she was still as friendly and nice as she is now.

I haven’t seen her, but whenever we call, I can always hear her and know she’s alright.

We have lots of other friends back in England, but she’s our “huggy friend”. 

She ALWAYS sends us packages or envelopes, on whatever event, holiday, or even BIRTHDAY😀!

She also once sent a postcard, with a jigsaw puzzle with it!

Ever since we’ve moved back to Indonesia (after FOUR years in England 🙁🙁🙁), trust me, I’ve got LOTS of postcards and birthday cards from her.

Sara also gives me and my sister the BEST gifts any grandchild could have, such as storybooks and stationary sets!       

Love her ❤️.

I kept her envelope within all her cards.

I put them ALL inside a yellow, gold box, just to not lose them 👍👍👍

Miss you Sara ❤️❤️❤️😊😊😊

~ Agatha. S 😊~

My Exam

One Thursday (12 June 2023), I woke extremely nervous. Why? Because today was one of those ‘international days’, and my school was having a flag ceremony.

You might think of it as a good thing… but I was going to be part of them L L L!

It’s not totally that bad, because it’s pretty much like an honour to participate…

But I’m going to be the flag bearer, which might be the most honourable, but hardest job.

I have to make sure the flag gets to the flag pole safely without touching the ground.

As I got t school, I found my two friends who were going to be the flag movers: Phoebe and Christine.

We practised by using a hat as the flag. It wasn’t going well, because second graders were in our way!

Finally the flag ceremony began, and everything went well.

I was so happy J J J…UNTIL MY TEACHER ANNOUNCED THAT THE EXAMS WERE ON SATURDAY!

I calmed down because the first exams were Computer and English.

I would’ve totally nailed it on English.

I still had to revise for Computer though. It was the holidays, so I was allowed to play out for a while.

Luckily, on Friday, I’ve learnt all through the history of computer.

Saturday came and I did amazing!

Monday was the day for RE (Religion) and Sports.

Sports were thumbs up for me, whilst RE?! I can’t even stay a whole class of it without laughing!

Thank God it was finished. I’m pretty sure it’ll be worth it  J.

Tuesday was the second hardest day. It was Bahasa (which was good) and Local Language= Batak (which was not good K)

I stole time to study for Bahasa, and then took the rest for Batak. It had many things to involve, such as history, local places, Ulos, surnames in Batak, and etc.

I was pleased when it was finished.

But now, Wednesday. The. Most. Sufferable. Exam. Day. Ever. L.

I had THREE exams in ONE day, and… THAT HAS NEVER HAPPENED BEFORE!

I had Civic Education and Arts (which was good) and Math (which was terrible).

Usually, math would’ve lasted for two hours, and would only be on one day. But things were different now K.

I studied a lot for math… and finally, the day came.

I nailed it with Civic Education and Arts, but when math came, our class wanted to give up.

As I was one of those smartest, I was able to answer the last few questions before handing them over.

I was tired, but really happy.

And finally, Thursday. The final day. It was Social Studies and Science.

I scored a-hundred on my last Science exam, and I’m willing to do that again (no pressure J).

Social Studies was my least subject with hope. It’s sometimes confusing, and having to learn economics. I know it’s useful for the future, but Primary schoolers will get it K.

After finishing both subjects, I squealed in delight.

Everything. Was. Finally. Finished!!!!!

Just waiting for the holidays now. Waiting for my report this Saturday. Good luck to me J J J.

~ Monday, 12 June 2023~

My Performance

Saturday 20th May 2023    

This morning, I woke up terribly early, because I had a wonderful thing going on. My school has an Art Performance, and our Regent and Deputy Regent is going to come JJJ!

Our teacher had already gave our ulos-skirts (the skirts we will be wearing), and we had to wear black-long-sleeved shirts.

We also had to wear ulos, which are “Batak” (that’s what the local people are called) scarves, but we wear it on our shoulder(s).

Mom put me on a chair, so she can put on my makeup. She actually bought face-powder and eyelashes!

She also did my hair, which was platted, and then finished it up with hairspray.

Then she went out to find a flower to hang on my hair. I love herJ!

At the end, it went fabulous! I looked really beautiful.

I quickly had breakfast, which were eggs (My fav sort of breakfast). We waited for Dad, who was taking a bath for and extremely long time (as usual).

While waiting, Mom quickly put on some lipstick, which went tricky, because my lips were thin (like hers).

Finally, Dad finished, then we took off.

I was upset, because Dad couldn’t be there. He had to work on his Visa Passport, for he was going to China tomorrow.

I complained a bit to Mom, because we left without putting on my ulos and skirt.

Giving up, Mom gave me my stuff, and I quickly put them on.

She also put more lipstick and face powder, because it was wearing off.

When it was time to get in, I was so excited. I saw my friends Callysta and Phoebe. I waved at them.

I then saw my friends Tysefoni and Tiara. We took our seats with the rest and waited for it to start.

Mom had to sit at the back, and I always took a peek at her every five minutes.

We watched my friend, Harel, who was singing (she has a lovely voice). She was doing a collaboration with grade four.

As she went down, she looked fabulous.

Classes went on and on, and I was starting to get bored.

Then, Mom came to sit next to me. She told me that it stinks at the back, so she came to get out of it.

I went to get ice cream, because I was bored out of my skull, and it was boiling hotL! Mom didn’t want one, so I took one for myself. It was a Taro Crispy ice cream, and it was only five-thousand rupiahs J J J. I quickly got back to my seat and ate ice cream. I was completed gobble-smacked when Mom asked me if she could take a bite.

Fifteen minutes later, lunch came. It was my favourite: Quality Fried Chicken (QFC) J J J! I gobbled it all up, and eventually, however, I got really full. I drank water, and then Mom added a touch of lipstick to finish.

Suddenly, the MC announced that class Five C (our class) was next!

I got nervous. Suddenly, I felt as if I had forgotten the moves L L L!

My friend, Christine, beckoned me and my friend, Abigail, to come with them backstage. 

We had ten minutes more to get ready.

Our parents were taking pictures, while their kids stood there in a line, shaking and feeling nervous.

We were doing a “tor-tor” dance called: “Annakon Hi do Hamoraon di Au”, which was a nice song to dance to.

Finally, we went up on stage, and everyone loved us! We were given money and even our Headmistress loved us.

Of course, a day had ended, and we had finished our work there.

My performance went really well, and thanks to my friends too.

:: Agatha E.F Simanjuntak ::                                                                  

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