my grandmother and i

i miss my grandma in singapore. having stayed with her for the 2 full months whilst i was in singapore, i got to know her heaps more then all the 18 years or so i spent living in singapore. she became a person, not just a face i saw during weekly visits to her home. i call her poh-poh, she has so much strenght in her and her mind is very active even though she has difficulty in walking long distances, thus making it hard for her to move around out of the house on a regular basis. she made me breakfast everyday and helped me pack my bag fold my clothes when i was leaving- because i procrastinate so much, i'd probably wouldnt have gotten my stuff packed on time (i still have heaps of my stuff left behind in my grandmas place which i forgot to bring back arrgh). she showed me her bank account documents which she kept really private so i could help explain to her in cantonese what was written in english. i felt important that i could be of help and that she trusted me to help her with her stuff :) sigh i really miss my grandma la.

when i was young i couldnt speak cantonese (not that i fully can, now haha) so it was hard to communicate with her. during reunion dinners, i would go; "poh poh, sek fan"(a greeting u say to ur elders before you eat). that was about the only cantonese i knew, aside from "poh poh, lei hou mou?" (how are you)Now my canto has improved quite some bit and i manage to communicate much more smoothly with my grandparents.



my grandma is an EXCELLENT cook and is QUEEN at mahjong. she boils the yummiest soups Ever (bou tong) and cooks to perfection. Like she whips up 5 dishes at a shot per dinner. Even if its just a simple stay home dinner, she makes sure there is at least 2 meat 2 veg. im not complaining. hurhur.Lucky i had my grandma or else i'd be surviving on mere maggi mee ever rey single fer reaking day. yeah. that would Suck. I used to think my mum's cantonese soups were the BEST..until i tasted my grandmum's (haha sorry mum, i still love you)wah damn shiok words cannot describe. she still uses the charcoal thingy, wonder if that helps give that good old fashioned taste.



Mahjong- Dont mess with my grandma. she is so vicious at her game. All her grandkids confirm lose to her. even my cousins who are pretty god at the game. She has majong kaki over to her house all the time, and she Always wins la can. Shes got the experience, the skill,everydamnthing. And i only learnt mahjong this year. Boy i missed out on lots. Should have learned earlier. because i am so intelligent, im sure by now i would have been able to beat my grandma. But argh now i have to wait a couple of years more to hone my mahjong skills. then the battle shall begin. Watch out, grandma. Christine is coming.

Like many mothers during her time, it was tough raising 7 kids, having to hold 2 jobs making sure there was food on the table. i miss drinking her soup. she'd always go -"yan yan, yum tong". yan is cantonese for "en" (my chinese name is pei en) and i never knew till a few yrs back so i always wondered why my grandma called me funny when i was small. haha regardless. My Grandma's a gem, and she's really old now, and i dont know when i will next return to singapore, and when i will see her again.

I miss her and i so much want to sit down and listen to her stories she will tell me in cantonese, of her life. its so ironic how i lived so near but was yet so far away from my grandma. i always knew her as poh poh, grandmother, an elder to be respected etc, but until late last yr when i went back to sg did i really get to spend time with her and get to know her as a person.

She's ageing, and i dont know how long more she has to live and i know i wont see her as regularly now that im in melb studying but i really hope to go back soon to spend time with her.



i pray she will live a long healthy life. grandma, i loveu.


My Blessed Grandparents (Maternal)- Miss you too, Kong Kong