the ZERO...
It is the year 1960...
Kate can be considered as one of the more cool and trendy girls you'll ever meet. She's sassy, fun-loving and very extraverted. Oh, she's 18 by the way, a typical student with many friends to hang out with. Everyone wants to hangout with her, because the coolness is rumoured to indirectly have spillover effects on others.
No one can ever imagine that her favourite pastime is actually... GARDENING (*boring!*). However, she kept this secret well, since people who are involved in gardening aren't usually considered cool by the crowd of her age.
the BEGINNING...
It was a Sunday - a day, surprisingly, without appointments and engagements. Kate dropped her shopping bags and lattes for her gardening spades and gloves. She loves picking out weeds in her garden on a bright and sunny day - getting a tan is of course her other intention.
Suddenly, she gasped. Right there, just one metre away, on the leaves of her bougainvilleas, she witnessed the process of an oddly coloured caterpillar (none like she'd ever seen) filling its stomach. Immediately, without thinking, she darted towards her precious plant in hope to 'squish' the oddly coloured caterpillar. Nevermind if the caterpillar looked weird. All she wanted to do is to save her precious bougainvillea leaves.
Predictably, she slipped. and fell. on some slippery grass, and landed with her mouth right on top of where the caterpillar was. In shock, she gulped. And the odd caterpillar was gone. She was so traumatized and tried forcing it out of her throat. But it was already deep deep down her esophagus.
"It's just a caterpillar... I guess I won't die or anything", she thought.
She immediately started to drink plenty of water to water down the gross aftertaste the caterpillar left in her mouth. Ew.
the TRANSFORMATION...
After some relief from that awful "snack" she just had, she continued with her gardening. Moments later, Kate started to feel a tingling sensation in her temples.
"Probably getting a headache", she thought.
Just when she gently touched her temples, she started hearing voices.
"I need water! Water!", one husky voice went.
"The sun's too bright!", another exclaimed.
"Who's there?!", Kate shouted. Lowering her hands from her temples. The voices stopped.
Still feeling the tingling sensation in her temples, Kate cautiously touched her temples with her fingers again.
"ARGH! I have a butterfly on me!", she heard a voice go. But no one was around her.
Turning her attention towards her plants, she saw a pretty butterfly on her orchids.
Her jaw dropped. Kate can listen to plants.
"GOSH! I wonder if they can understand me...", she thought.
"Of course we can!!", the plants boomed.
Correction. Kate has telepathy powers with plants.
Days went by, and slowly but surely, Kate's powers were showing. Not only could she talk to plants, but once, she tried planting some seeds. Every seed she planted, after being covered with soil, just shot up from the ground into a fully grown plant. She had the power to grow plants... fast!
Kate could also flutter like a butterfly. Small but powerful leaves emerged from her back and she started to learn how to fly. Of course, the leaves can now be controlled and she can hide or reveal them whenever she wants.
Little did Kate know that the caterpillar she ate was indeed no ordinary caterpillar. This caterpillar has traveled the ends of the earth and gobbled almost every type of plant leaf ever known to man. The leaves in the caterpillar stayed there in its stomach, and the mix was a powerful concoction... similar to that of a magic potion. That's what gave Kate her powers.
the MOTIVATION...
Weeks went by and Kate did not find a need to utilize her powers, apart from her personal use for her garden, or let anyone know of them. From the comic books she read, people with powers usually kept them discreet. So basically, she's still a Zero.
She just went ahead being the usual sassy and outgoing teenager she was.
It wasn't until one day after school, when her girlfriends went to her home and discovered her beautiful garden. Instead of labeling her as "boring", her girlfriends were amazed by the gorgeous flowers and casually commented that Kate should put her gardening skills to good use and improve the greenery in her neighbourhood.
Kate pondered on her friends' comments for a few days. Then it struck her...
She decided to put her powers into good use and spruce up the green scene in the whole of Singapore.
the HERO...
Many perceive Singapore's clean and green image to be the result of its government's wise decisions. But little did they know that it was all a cover-up. It wasn't the "Tree Planting Day" nor the "Keep Singapore Clean" campaign launched some thirty years ago which transformed Singapore. It was all the work of one little girl, a student in fact, who changed the tiny red dot to what it is today.
She is none other than....
The Green Lion (aka Kate).
Ever since she ate that caterpillar while gardening one day, her life has totally changed. She can not only fly, has telepathy with plants and has the power to grow plants to maturity in a split second. (read: the BEGINNING and the TRANSFORMATION)
Since the 1960s, after Kate realized that she possessed powers, she decided to put her poers into good use. So she used her powers for good of the city... to beautify it to the Garden City it is known today. (read: the MOTIVATION)
Since she has the power to talk to plants, she knows what they are lacking of and attends to their needs. When she knows that a plant has withered, she has the power to plant a new one immediately.
All this while, it has been her duty and passion, and whoever ruins the greenery in Singapore will be nabbed by our very own Superhero. Of course, the government knows she exists, but because The Green Lion wants to keep a low profile, all credit is given to the government, and for the past 30 years or so, the citizens of Singapore have always thought that it was the government's initiatives that made it what it is today.
In fact, the government and The Green Lion have been collaborating for so long that they have set up a system together. When The Green Lion spots someone tampering with the greenery, she will nab the person and hand him/her over to the government.
Of course, things associated with the government are always Top Secret. No one knows of this Superhero. There are some who have seen her flying amongst the clouds, but no one can be sure what they have seen. Until one fateful day, a little boy caught The Green Lion in action and took a picture using his camera phone just before she took flight. He then sent the picture to STOMP. The next day, newspapers in the region were plastered with the news of this unknown character, where the media named "The Green Lion". That was how the name came about...
It was aptly named too. Since "Green" is associated with plants and "Lion", apart from her lion-like mane, represents Singapore.
After the whole saga, the government covered it up quickly, brushing it off as something else. Kate was quite amused with the whole thing. She thought that that was a good name for a Superhero, so she kept it.
Ever since Kate has been the "green" Superhero, the city bloomed with flowers and plants like never before.
So the next time you decide to pluck a tree leaf or flower for your science project.... think again. The Green Lion may be just behind you, even before you know it.
It is the year 1960...
Kate can be considered as one of the more cool and trendy girls you'll ever meet. She's sassy, fun-loving and very extraverted. Oh, she's 18 by the way, a typical student with many friends to hang out with. Everyone wants to hangout with her, because the coolness is rumoured to indirectly have spillover effects on others.
No one can ever imagine that her favourite pastime is actually... GARDENING (*boring!*). However, she kept this secret well, since people who are involved in gardening aren't usually considered cool by the crowd of her age.
the BEGINNING...
It was a Sunday - a day, surprisingly, without appointments and engagements. Kate dropped her shopping bags and lattes for her gardening spades and gloves. She loves picking out weeds in her garden on a bright and sunny day - getting a tan is of course her other intention.
Suddenly, she gasped. Right there, just one metre away, on the leaves of her bougainvilleas, she witnessed the process of an oddly coloured caterpillar (none like she'd ever seen) filling its stomach. Immediately, without thinking, she darted towards her precious plant in hope to 'squish' the oddly coloured caterpillar. Nevermind if the caterpillar looked weird. All she wanted to do is to save her precious bougainvillea leaves.
Predictably, she slipped. and fell. on some slippery grass, and landed with her mouth right on top of where the caterpillar was. In shock, she gulped. And the odd caterpillar was gone. She was so traumatized and tried forcing it out of her throat. But it was already deep deep down her esophagus.
"It's just a caterpillar... I guess I won't die or anything", she thought.
She immediately started to drink plenty of water to water down the gross aftertaste the caterpillar left in her mouth. Ew.
the TRANSFORMATION...
After some relief from that awful "snack" she just had, she continued with her gardening. Moments later, Kate started to feel a tingling sensation in her temples.
"Probably getting a headache", she thought.
Just when she gently touched her temples, she started hearing voices.
"I need water! Water!", one husky voice went.
"The sun's too bright!", another exclaimed.
"Who's there?!", Kate shouted. Lowering her hands from her temples. The voices stopped.
Still feeling the tingling sensation in her temples, Kate cautiously touched her temples with her fingers again.
"ARGH! I have a butterfly on me!", she heard a voice go. But no one was around her.
Turning her attention towards her plants, she saw a pretty butterfly on her orchids.
Her jaw dropped. Kate can listen to plants.
"GOSH! I wonder if they can understand me...", she thought.
"Of course we can!!", the plants boomed.
Correction. Kate has telepathy powers with plants.
Days went by, and slowly but surely, Kate's powers were showing. Not only could she talk to plants, but once, she tried planting some seeds. Every seed she planted, after being covered with soil, just shot up from the ground into a fully grown plant. She had the power to grow plants... fast!
Kate could also flutter like a butterfly. Small but powerful leaves emerged from her back and she started to learn how to fly. Of course, the leaves can now be controlled and she can hide or reveal them whenever she wants.
Little did Kate know that the caterpillar she ate was indeed no ordinary caterpillar. This caterpillar has traveled the ends of the earth and gobbled almost every type of plant leaf ever known to man. The leaves in the caterpillar stayed there in its stomach, and the mix was a powerful concoction... similar to that of a magic potion. That's what gave Kate her powers.
the MOTIVATION...
Weeks went by and Kate did not find a need to utilize her powers, apart from her personal use for her garden, or let anyone know of them. From the comic books she read, people with powers usually kept them discreet. So basically, she's still a Zero.
She just went ahead being the usual sassy and outgoing teenager she was.
It wasn't until one day after school, when her girlfriends went to her home and discovered her beautiful garden. Instead of labeling her as "boring", her girlfriends were amazed by the gorgeous flowers and casually commented that Kate should put her gardening skills to good use and improve the greenery in her neighbourhood.
Kate pondered on her friends' comments for a few days. Then it struck her...
She decided to put her powers into good use and spruce up the green scene in the whole of Singapore.
the HERO...
Many perceive Singapore's clean and green image to be the result of its government's wise decisions. But little did they know that it was all a cover-up. It wasn't the "Tree Planting Day" nor the "Keep Singapore Clean" campaign launched some thirty years ago which transformed Singapore. It was all the work of one little girl, a student in fact, who changed the tiny red dot to what it is today.
She is none other than....
The Green Lion (aka Kate).Ever since she ate that caterpillar while gardening one day, her life has totally changed. She can not only fly, has telepathy with plants and has the power to grow plants to maturity in a split second. (read: the BEGINNING and the TRANSFORMATION)
Since the 1960s, after Kate realized that she possessed powers, she decided to put her poers into good use. So she used her powers for good of the city... to beautify it to the Garden City it is known today. (read: the MOTIVATION)
Since she has the power to talk to plants, she knows what they are lacking of and attends to their needs. When she knows that a plant has withered, she has the power to plant a new one immediately.
All this while, it has been her duty and passion, and whoever ruins the greenery in Singapore will be nabbed by our very own Superhero. Of course, the government knows she exists, but because The Green Lion wants to keep a low profile, all credit is given to the government, and for the past 30 years or so, the citizens of Singapore have always thought that it was the government's initiatives that made it what it is today.
In fact, the government and The Green Lion have been collaborating for so long that they have set up a system together. When The Green Lion spots someone tampering with the greenery, she will nab the person and hand him/her over to the government.
Of course, things associated with the government are always Top Secret. No one knows of this Superhero. There are some who have seen her flying amongst the clouds, but no one can be sure what they have seen. Until one fateful day, a little boy caught The Green Lion in action and took a picture using his camera phone just before she took flight. He then sent the picture to STOMP. The next day, newspapers in the region were plastered with the news of this unknown character, where the media named "The Green Lion". That was how the name came about...
It was aptly named too. Since "Green" is associated with plants and "Lion", apart from her lion-like mane, represents Singapore.
After the whole saga, the government covered it up quickly, brushing it off as something else. Kate was quite amused with the whole thing. She thought that that was a good name for a Superhero, so she kept it.
Ever since Kate has been the "green" Superhero, the city bloomed with flowers and plants like never before.
So the next time you decide to pluck a tree leaf or flower for your science project.... think again. The Green Lion may be just behind you, even before you know it.
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