Grandma's 8th Anniversary

Today is the 8th anniversary of my paternal grandmother's passing. As with family tradition, we gathered at the family home to have a meal to celebrate her life. A pot-luck dinner we had. Happy conversations we shared, even to the extent of reminiscing about the weddings of my mum and an aunt. Much laughter was had at the expense of the latter, who seemingly could not remember where her wedding banquet was held. Was it 'Pi Yow Tin' or 'Sek Yuen'? Apparently both were household names at the time. Another aunt thinks it's the former, my mum the latter. No one else could offer a tie-breaker. So, I told my aunt to go look up her photos and bring a copy to an already planned lunch at 'Sek Yuen' later in the week. Since the restaurant hasn't changed much in decades, the photo would bring about a resolution to this little riddle. That was how the evening went. Enjoyable times over food, regaling each other with amusing conversation, maintaining and nurturing family ties, a legacy that has been passed down the generations in my family, well at least to those of us in my time who hold dear to this practice.

My cousin Lynette sums it up well in her Facebook posting - 'Today is the 8th anniversary of my grandma's home going. As is customary in our family, we gathered for dinner and chitchat. Lots of lovely memories shared. So glad she left a legacy of the importance of family togetherness.' My sister, Suk Harn had this to say - 'Today is ma-ma's memorial. Makes me think of the times we spent making curry puff together.' To which my cousin Moses responded - 'I wasn't much help in the making...but was very involved in the eating!' Another thought from Suk Harn went like this - 'And also how she used to make us drink lime eno every weekend. Such fond memories.' That's a funny one. Even funnier was Lynette's comment - 'Eno was a cure all.' Classic! Haha!

We all remember Mama in our own special way. She was a big part of our lives, particularly for those of us who were under her care when we were toddlers. A lesson to be learnt ... to value those who are with us in the present and create memories that can be cherished in the future.

Photo of Mama in her baju kebaya.