A NeverEnding Story...

The sun beat down mercilessly on all the young and aspiring stall owners. It may cost only $20 to set up a stall on a Saturday, but it sure makes it tough on both the buyers and sellers. Flan roped in her dad to help her that day. It started off quite excitedly, despite the sweltering heat. Everyone seemed very perked up - the stalls were also set up way before the official time, 1 pm, and shoppers seemed impatient for the goods to be displayed.

Flan knew exactly how she wanted the stall to look like and wasted no time. In ten minutes, she had laid it to her satisfaction, labelled the items according to what they were worth, and stepped back to admire her masterpiece. Selling her handicraft at a flea market was the wrong place to market her art, but she had to "test" the market and at $20 a day, she could afford the risk.

An hour later, she wasn't so sure anymore. She could hear the two ladies next to her selling used, branded clothes and accessories gossiping in the background. Somewhere far behind, a girl was shouting, "3 for 10". Her father had just finished his bowl of beancurd and was settling down companionably next to her. "I don't get it. I don't get it." Flan mumbled. Her father grinned in reply, "Well, you are not the only one..."

"Oh, these are so creative! These are just so beautiful. And did you make them all?" interrupted a middle-aged Caucasian woman, accompanied by her husband. "Can we? Please, could we take a photo of them?"

"Oh, sure, by all means!" Flan said graciously. Ideas sure aren't worth much these days, she thought as she stood and showed the lady how some of the boxes clasp together very neatly. In the end, the lady whipped out a list of names and decided that she would do her christmas shopping right at that very stall. Trembling with excitement, Flan felt a rush of adrenaline course through her as she assisted the lady with her choices.

Ten minutes later, she was beaming with joy. $19! It just about cover the rent! And that was her last thought as the clouds above her released buckets of raindrops to cool everyone down.