Submitted by Emily the former Ice-Cream Lady. She read it to great acclaim at Dickstock 2015 last Sat.
I asked her to publish it and here it is, with just minimal editing. You can reach her at
icecreamladyhk@gmail.com or on Facebook (Emily Ho):
A Horse with Wings
A tribute to Richard Jones - by Emily the Ice-Cream Lady
The very last time I met Richard was when I came back from the city to Lamma, passing by the Fountain Head on Main Street, about three to four months ago.
I heard him before I could see him (American!)
“HELLO EMILY, COME OVER HERE!” he waved at me, sitting outside the bar with a bunch of middle-aged local folks, who would go there drinking nearly on a daily basis.
Quickly I walked towards him and sat next to him. It was nice to chat with one of my oldest friends (not in terms of age), though I hadn't seen him for a while and felt a little bit tired. Now I am thankful that I did not turn him down at that moment.
“What would you like to drink, Emily?” He always bought friends some drinks. I accepted it because I had not been drinking in a bar for quite a while, but more importantly, because it was Richard Jones. Since I closed down the ice-cream shop, my social life on Lamma has been limited to grocery shopping and having my quick lunch at the cha-chaan-teng (Hong Kong style cafe). All in less than an hour, because there was not much to talk about, as well as not many people to talk to. But seeing Richard Jones by chances was certainly one of the most unexpected delightful moments of my uneventful post-ice-cream era.
Then he told me about his plan on his next trip - which was part of his routine – as he had been travelling nearly half of his lifetime. He had to leave Hong Kong every six months since he had no permanent Hong Kong identity card, even after been living in the territory for over 25 years. I called him “a horse with wings”. Richard was born in 1954 which was the Year of the Horse, according to the Chinese Lunar Calendar, and people born in the Year of the Horse are best suited to travel. Obviously he outdid that, for he was not just like a horse, but a horse with wings – so wild and free.
We had been friends for almost fifteen years. Since we're both crazy people, we got along very well. Every time I saw him, he would shout my name loud from afar and say something funny. But that didn't offend me; in fact, I was happy to be made fun of by him. He was just full of life, never getting bored and never getting anyone bored around him. I have never heard him complain of anyone or anything. He planned Dickstock for his 60th birthday last October, but it was cancelled due to the complaints received from some (inaudible) neighbours. It was supposed to be the biggest, punkiest, funniest party on Lamma, yet he showed no signs of grievance. Sadly, he would never be able to host another one for us.
He also made no enemies. In a closely-knitted community like Lamma, having no confrontation with anybody at all in 25 years is deemed a world record. I know it quite damn well when I ran my ice-cream shop. He must have his own ways, something so special that only he knew the secrets of achieving it. Sometimes it makes me wonder if life had been particularly easy for him or he had been particularly easy on life. I think the latter sounds more correct.
Before I went home, I remembered that I asked him a question:
"Are most people wearing a mask? Because I find some people are quite phony." Without giving a second thought, he said,
“Oh yes, definitely yes!”. He never said anything vague. He was always straight-to-the-point. He was probably one of the very few people who could say and do whatever they wanted. Even if he was wearing a mask, he was certainly wearing a mask that made everyone happy and comfortable. Like all of us, he had his own troubles and worries, of course. But he chose to be happy and took life as it was.
That is what his uniqueness is about. That is why I like him so much.
And I always will.
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