Insight into ZhaoMing

TALKING about interpretations, I am reminded of the interesting case of the housewife in Chukai, Terengganu, who told police she went to bed about 5am on Oct 11 after making preparations for Hari Raya Aidilfitri. Her husband had gone to work.

About an hour after she went to bed, she felt the warmth of a man beside her and they made love. Later, when her husband walked in and asked her about the man who had walked out of their room, she said it was a case of mistaken identity. She lodged a report that she had been raped and police picked up a colleague of the husband who had been staying with them.

She had thought the man who had shared the bed with her was her husband. She had, it seems, interpretated it wrongly.

The police are working on their own interpretation of the events that transpired.

Then there is the case of the 14-year-old from Mersing who spent the night at her boyfriend's house on Oct 10.

After returning from a stroll with a girlfriend, they went to her boyfriend's house at 11 pm. The boyfriend's family allowed the girls to sleep in the hall.

When everyone had gone to sleep, the boyfriend invited her into his room. The girl, it appears, misinterpreted his intentions and went in. The next morning, she lodged a rape report against him.

Another classic case of interpretation is when leaders cry. Now, in Malaysia, it has become the fashion, especially for men, to cry in public.

When a leader of a country cries while delivering a speech, some see it as a sign of weakness but others see it as an indication that beneath that tough exterior there is a soft heart.

A policeman being offered a RM50 note by a driver whom he had stopped on the road may feel he should not insult the driver by refusing this kind gesture. The ACA will have a different interpretation, of course.

Words and intentions can often be misinterpretated. For instance, if I were to see someone floating on cloud nine, I could say : "Look, he's gay". But within the space of a second, people will send various interpretations of the word "gay" into orbit.

I could call someone who behaves like a child "childish" or "childlike". One is an insult, the other can be a term of endearment. Again, interpretation. Which is why, I guess, we should be careful about what we say and do.