yesterday sebastian had an appointment with his speech therapist. we could have taken a taxi, but frugal blake’s blood flows through my veins, and so we took the bus.

although hong kong’s public transportation system is excellent, and FAR SURPASSES that of any canadian city i have ever lived in, this time of year, even waiting two minutes for the bus is tough. the sun is nailing down on your forehead. it is a wet, close, heavy heat.

on monday, when sebastian and i went to drama, we also took the bus. drama class is held in repulse bay, which is in a different direction to central, where sebastian’s speech therapist’s office is located. so pass time, while glancing desperately down the road to see if the number 22 mini bus was coming, i said to sebastian,

look across the street! that’s where we waited on monday to go to drama!

yes! why did we wait there?

i explained about different directions and mentioned that if we were taking a bus to church, school or ben’s house, we would be on this side of the street, but if we were going to ocean park, we would be on the other side of the street. fortunately, this discussion lasted long enough to allow the number 22 to zoom along.

catching a mini bus can be a tricky business. mini buses, which seat 16, dodge around double decker buses like nobody’s business, and often the driver is so engrossed in a tricky maneouver that he misses your frantic handwaving. so, holding on to sebastian’s hand i waved furiously and the driver screetched to a halt.

we climbed on and i asked sebastian to put the money into the collection area. and we were off, weaving in and out of traffic, speeding up if ever we were near an amber light.

after the appointment, we took the number 55 home. the number 55, although slower than the 22, has a distinct advantage: it takes you halfway up the hill where we live. you see, the 55 departs from the hospital, which is located on the hill. the 22 chugs along the main road, and comes no closer than the beginning of the hospital’s driveway. the nice thing about the 22 is that it takes you along hollywood road, and the rest of upper central and lower midlevels.

while on the number 55, i gave sebastian the rest of my tea to drink. he loves lukewarm tea, and i let him finish off the tea on those rare occasions when the bus was foiled and fuming at a red light.

i watched sebastian tilting the cup at a 90 degree angle tapping the top of the cup in hopes of catching an extra drip, and i was struck afresh and how the little things are really all it takes for kids. they give it their all. i won’t draw parallels to my life, where things like embarrassment prevent you from trying to get the last drip (why does no one take the last chip on the plate anyway?), but it made me think.

sebastian said,

mummy, i would like you and me to take the tram.

this is a town where disney has invaded, and my kid wants to take a tram ride. it takes so little to make their worlds wonderful and exciting. i told him i would take him next week. and i will.

then after he had told the bus driver to stop (yow lok m goy!) we were walking along and sebastian said,

mummy, i want to go to the beach with my daddy and you and my triplets.

not a huge request. so tomorrow, wish us luck, we are heading to the beach. weather will be very hot, about 30 above, but we are going. a family outing. and then in the afternoon, we’re off to buy groceries together. another simple outing for our family. but we’re together and we’ve seen it makes sebastian, and im betting jasper, sela and carys, happy.

kids never talk about money as something they want. money, or even that super blaster lego airplane that sebastian loves, isn’t something he lists when he talks about things that would make him happy. having his daddy come home from a business trip, eating dinner together, spending time together, that’s what makes him happy. sure, no doubt about it, if we were poverty stricken, the lack of money would infringe on our happiness, but right now, as long as we have money for food and housing, sebastian doesn’t need money for happiness.