For his eleventh birthday,Lin was given a gift that would shape his life. On that day his father took himto the Children's Activity Centre and said he could choose any course thatinterested him. There was just one requirement: Lin would have to promise tostudy it for at least one year.
Lin had had many hobbies,but none kept his interest for more than a week or two. His mum once gave him abag of stamps to encourage stamp collecting. That hobby lasted a week. Then hisfather got him some paints hoping that Lin's artistic side would shine through.Those paints were now under his bed, still unopened. This time Lin's parentswould let him decide.
Lin's eyes moved down thenoticeboard that listed all the courses on offer. He stopped at "Photography".He liked the idea of taking beautiful pictures but the notice said that eachstudent needed their own camera. Although Lin's family weren't poor, they weren'trich either, and a camera cost a lot of money. He continued looking.
The next course tocatchhis eye was "Language Art". He didn't even know what that meant.His father explained that it taught people how to make public speeches. Lin, ashy boy, could think of nothing worse.
Then he saw it."Cooking" sounded like something he'd like to do. It was inexpensiveand convenient. It could be done alone and it was also creative.
Based on Lin's hobbyhistory, his dad had doubts, but he agreed. Much to his parents' surprise, Linkept his promise. He studied cooking at the Centre every Saturday, and practicedat home, making delicious meals for his family. Everyone looked forward tobirthdays, when they could eat his cakes. Lin got great satisfaction from thepleasure his food brought to others.
The months turned to yearsbut his hobby never changed again.
Now Lin is an adult andruns a successful restaurant. When customers say they enjoy his meal, he stillgets the same pleasure he did as a child, and remembers the special gift hereceived all those years ago.
