JESUS JOINS CLEMENT FOR 21 CELEBRATIONS
"I am here with good news for you, which will bring great joy to all the people"
Luke 2, v10.
Clement turns twenty one today, the very same day we remember Jesus' birth. And while Jesus was not born on this day, that it happens to coincide with Clement's celebrations is indicative of the importance of such an event. Clement Wong however, cleverly arranged a party less than a week before on Saturday 19 December. His school friends were cosily installed on the front of table 4, where the mayhem inflicted by them was only noticed by themselves. As we partied away all night, with games of Bingo, spot the dish, and 'how many more plates will Rudolph have', we came to honour the person that is Clement Wong. Earlier that day, a thanksgiving mass was said in honour of Mr Wong, and he was fortunate to have a specialist organist and cantor from St Mary's Cathedral. The following is a speech delivered by Dominic Moawad at the official party:
When Clement asked me to give a speech at his 21st, I went into panic mode. First, I knew that this would probably be the largest audience to hear me try to be interesting and secondly, which is lucky for Clement, there are no dark or embarrassing stories to tell about him. So I thought, maybe I should make something up: but if I said: "I remember the time when Clem was so drunk that he began talking to the stars" it would be very obvious that this could not be true. Seeing Clement drunk would be like Shane Warne saying no to a quick buck.
1988 was a year of beginnings for many of us. The bi-centenary year was full of optimism and celebration. Against this backdrop was year five, St Mary's Cathedral, Waverton. It was there that I came to know many of my very good friends. One of them was a boy who lived in a very cool sounding suburb… Beverly Hills. He also had an older brother at the same school. Clement, or as we like to say, Clem, was thus introduced. I don't really remember the day we met, but because we were in such a small group, we quickly got to know each other. I think Clement had a talent not only for singing - he could drown out most of us if he wanted to - but he got on really well in the handbball court.
Much of one's success in Primary School is determined by how well you can play handball - so Clem was successful. While my shonky skills were as a 'cat' - artfully manouvering the ball around the corners, Clement just did the job - slamming the ball away from reach. Clement was also a worthy challenger at my favourite sport - table tennis. In primary, we had a competition where he got into the finals. I was the odds on favourite, but a lot of kids lost their pocket money because clement won the match. I can reveal for the first time that the real reason I lost was because Clem paid me to lose. From that time on, we became great friends.
Where I really got to know Clement well though, was through music. Both of us played piano, were in the same grade, and eventually we would both end up as organ scholars at St Mary's. Clement could play this really cool piece that I desperately wanted to learn and use in improvisations. The piece was called Chopsticks and thanks to Clement it has played an important part in my dubious musical achievement.
With the pipe organ, although Clement started a few years later, he quickly caught up, and at the time, little did I realise that one day both of us would actually be able to control a high mass at St Mary's Cathedral. We also had a showdown at the Sydney Organ Competition, but this time, I paid Clem to lose.
There are many more stories to tell, but from the deadly silence and yawning going around, this speech is sounding like a Cathedral sermon, not a 21st speech. Interestingly enough, 21st speeches often do sound like eulogies - we speak of the person in the past tense and look back at our memories. But coming to the present - I think we can all agree that Clement is a great person. He is intelligent and personable. From my years of knowing him, he has always been there to listen to my inane whining and boring stories and he even laughs occasionally at my attempts at humour. Clement also has a subtle sense of humour and is very dedicated to the things he does. I don't ever remember him giving up or failing in anything he has tried. To use the handball metaphor, Clement gets the job done, and with success. It has been a privelege to be Clem's friend over the last ten years and I will no doubt look forward to the next hundred. Happy Birthday.