Malaysians show talent and creativity in crafting original stories
THE Royal Commonwealth Society, in the UK, honoured Malaysians Chan Zi Yu, aged 10 and 16-year- old Ferdiana Osmund with gold awards at the Queen’s Commonwealth Essay Competition 2025. As the world’s oldest international writing competition, it is open to nationals and residents of all Commonwealth countries and territories.
According to the organising committee of the competition, 2025 was a record-breaking year, attracting 53,434 entries from across 56 member countries of the commonwealth. The gold award is top-tier recognition within the competition.
Chan, who is currently enrolled at SJKC Chen Moh in Petaling Jaya, won the award with her entry titled “The Magical Door to Sanrio Land” in the junior category of the competition, under 14 years of age. She chose to write on the topic of embarking on a very special journey, where a secret door is discovered and that takes the writer into her favourite book.
An excerpt from her essay proved unique and imaginative, “I was casually eating in the dining room, then when I went back to my room to read my favourite book, ‘The Sanrio Land’, I saw something strange. As I was flipping the pages, when I reached page 117, I saw a weird sentence that said, “Hey! Touch this and you can teleport to Sanrio Land!”. I always read this book, and I never saw Cinnamoroll say this before. I have exactly read this book 18 times and never seen this sentence. So, I touched the small tree in the picture, and in the blink of any eye, WHOOSH! I teleported to the exact tree I had touched in the book.
“I was greeted by Cinnamoroll, Kuromi,Pompompurin,Badtz-Maru, and Hello Kitty.
“I was so stunned, speechless, and surprised. Even though I was shocked, I also greeted them and gave them a big hug.
“I was in Sanrio Land.”
Sherry Wong, Chan’s mother said: “From a young age, Zi Yu has shown a remarkable passion for learning English independently. She was especially inspired and encouraged by her pre-school teacher, whose care and attention helped nurture her love for the language.
“Through a report, we learnt that Zi Yu is a natural interpersonal learner, thriving in environments that encourage connection and engagement. Her dedication to improvement is evident in her achievements. She attended Cambridge English classes and was recognised for her achievements in the exams,” she added.
Her mother also added that Zi Yu chose one of her favourite authors as Geronimo Stilton and when asked why she chose that particular author, her answer was, “inside the book is quite interesting, which no other book has it, with colourful words and pictures.”
Chan’s final ambition is to be recognised as an author of her own books. Apart from books, she also has a love for badminton and volleyball, which she plays regularly.
Another student from Sabah, Ferdiana, 16 yrs, won a Gold award in the senior category and is currently enrolled in her first year, pursuing automative technology at Keningau Vocational College.
Her essay titled, “Huminodun: the spirit of sacrifice in Sabah’s sacred soil”, was centred on the ledgendary figure in Sabah’s Kadazandusun culture.
The essay chronicled the original story of Huminodun, who according to folklore, willingly sacrificed herself for the well-being of the Dusun community during a severe drought and failing crops.
Huminodun, according to legend is the daughter of the creator deity Kinoingan, who voluntarily offered herself as a sacrifice to restore life to earth.
After her body was laid to rest, the first rice crop grew from her remains, providing sustenance to the local community.
Till today, her sacrifice is celebrated annually through the Kaamatan festival celebrated every May.
