by Gerald Lee (P6 2019)

 

“Three lollipops. Five candy corn. That will be four dollars,” the cashier of the candy store said.

 

After handing the cashier the money, Tom walked out of the sweet shop that he bought from daily. Tom had a sweet tooth and had no control over his love for sweets. Every day, he would visit the same shop and buy his usuals.

 

That day, he had finished school and reached home.

 

“Ouch!” Tom cried out in pain when he bit the lollipop.

 

One of his teeth hurt like a hot piece of steel in his mouth. Immediately, he dropped the sweets on the ground and continued crying out in pain.

 

Tom’s mother heard his cries of pain and ran over to see what had happened. Immediately, Tom’s mother took him to the dentist, which was a stone’s throw away.

 

After a check-up, the dentist said that Tom had a tooth decay and needed to extract his teeth. Hearing the bad news, Tom truly regretted not taking care of his teeth and having no control over eating sweets.

 

Tom also had no control over playing computer games. Every day, Tom would spend hours playing his computer games rather than study. He did not work hard and always left his homework unfinished. Tom also did not care about exams.

 

However, it all stopped one day. Seven days after his English test, Tom finally got back his results. He expected to get a high mark but instead he did not pass the test.

 

It was not long before Tom’s mother found out about Tom’s English test results. Immediately, she flew into rage. She started scolding him badly and also banned him from playing computer games for a week. Tom’s mother also encouraged him to study harder and always finish his homework on time.

 

From that incident onwards, Tom promised to have self-control over his addiction with playing computer games. He would reduce the time spent on playing computer games and also promised to study harder and improve his test results. He had also learnt a great lesson – that he should reduce the amount of sweets that he ate and take care of his teeth. He truly regretted not controlling his addictions.