CHAPTER 43

Original: 2006-09-01

Rewritten: 2025-12-29

The first summer after Lun moved into the residential home, we took him on a week-long trip to the pleasant lakeside of Shuswap Lake. He focused solely on eating and drinking, enjoyed himself thoroughly, and returned satisfied.

After Lun moved into the residence early in the year, he continued attending classes for another four and a half months before the summer holiday arrived. Having completed three years of Grade 12, he had to graduate. As this was the first time we were taking him on a long trip since residence, to avoid making him overly anxious, the two of us and his younger brother, and the residence staff all kept it a secret, not letting him know anything in advance.

We had already figured out Lun’s mindset. Whatever arrangements were made, he basically regarded them as entertainment programs. Each time, it was enough simply to tell him what the next two or three “programs” would be.

Since there were plenty of clothes at home, the two of us prepared the luggage ourselves, without disturbing him at the residence. The staff only needed to divide his medication into small daily packets, writing the date, time, name of the medicine, and dosage on each sealed paper bag.

As usual, we picked Lun up for the weekend. He came lightly packed, wearing only a set of clothes and a pair of slippers. To avoid disrupting the routine he was accustomed to, the weekend activities went on as normal. Only after several rounds of eating did we reveal a hint of what was coming.

First, we went to a café for fried rice, then to the supermarket to buy cookies, and finally back home to continue eating. Once he had settled down, we told him, “Lun Lun, Sunday’s program is packing our bags to go on vacation and riding in the car.” The moment he heard the English word “vacation,” his eyes immediately fixed on us. To reinforce the idea, we had prepared some travel books and brochures in advance and showed them to him. He looked through them joyfully. We then began packing, and the evening passed peacefully.

In fact, where our family went did not really matter to Lun, as long as the trip included: (1) driving on the highway for more than an hour; and (2) stopping along the way for a break at his favorite fast-food places—McDonald’s or an ice-cream shop. He especially liked restaurants with skylights, perhaps because they felt the most like being on vacation.

After a hearty meal, we would go straight to a motel or a vacation rental. Once inside the room, he would inspect everything—opening the closets, patting the sofa bed, feeling the texture of the materials, and finding a spot he liked to rest.

When traveling, Lun usually chose to sleep on the sofa bed. When he felt like sleeping at night, he would personally try pulling the bed out. After moving into the residence, his living habits improved. When traveling with us, he drank only about half as much soda as before, his appetite increased significantly, and he ate very quickly—finishing a plate of pasta within fifteen minutes. When eating French fries, he used both hands, breaking each fry in half, eating the two ends first and the middle last. I would “tax” him five to ten long fries, depending on their size.

He used to eat only hamburgers: first picking off and eating the cheese, then the beef patty, and finally the bun. Now he is willing to eat other types and shapes of bread.

He is quite greedy. Even while eating his own food, he keeps his eyes on the food on our plates. If it suits his taste, he will beg with his eyes; if that fails, both his eyes and hands get involved. Since it is rare for him to interact with us, we also want to indulge him a little. When ordering food, apart from his younger brother’s portion, everything else is chosen to suit Lun’s taste. Still, he is very well-behaved and has never thrown a tantrum over this. The only thing that makes him restless is when the restaurant is slow in bringing the soda.

And so, a week of eating, drinking, and having fun passed by. In the morning, we told him that the next program was: “Ride in the car, eat French fries, and go back to the residence.” He had no objections at all, peacefully and happily waiting for the next program.