Thursday, February 21, 2008

Crossroads

Mom gave me these two photos to scan for posterity. I then undertook to clean up the photos digitally to enhance it, possibly make it look new.




The photo on the left is of (from left) my maternal grandmother, her mother and MY mom. Three generations of maternal link. The other photo is of my mom, HER mom, HER dad, HIS sister and HIS mother. My Koong-koong (or grandfather) worked for the same British mining company until he retired. And he kept his hairstyle until he passed on.


What set me in a contemplative mood and hence, this posting is the fork in the road that my grand-daddy found shortly after taking the studio photo on the right. HIS parents had decided to return to their village in Guangdong with their young daughter, who was merely months older than their grand-daughter, my MOM. The seniors reckoned they'd have saved enough to live comfortably back in the hinterland, and even contribute financially to the community there. Koong-koong chose to remain in his country of birth, Malaya, with his young family.


Fast forward SIXTY years.....


My mother is a retired teacher whose children were not required to support financially. She made a trip to the village from where her roots originated, with her husband and siblings. The village is served by basic amenities and almost everybody there are farmers. An uncle who went along recalled the awkward feeling that everybody there seemed, and literally looked like family. Later, he was told that almost everybody in the village shared the same family name. There is a dearth of people in their twenties as most have gone seeking better prospects in the cities.


There was a family reunion of sorts at my grand-aunt's abode. Though constructed of brick and mortar, it was of dirt flooring. But these simple folks made certain their distant relations (from the distant, promised land that is Malaysia) were comfortable, slaughtered their best livestock and soon a modest feast was served. Grand-aunt kept praising the Gods for fulfilling a life-long wish: That she would meet her sibling. Though Koong-koong passed away in 1990, to her, the presence of HIS children was representative enough.


It turned out that upon his arrival, great-grand-daddy was The Man in the village. He bankrolled constructions of small, but vital bridges and roads. He was known to be a charitable man with the community's interests at heart. But sadly, as the old adage goes, no good deed goes unpunished. When the communists came into power, he was somehow accused by certain envious quarters to be a corrupt bourgeois citizen. He was tortured and died from his injuries.


His family then languished as farmers. Two generations on, they are still tilling the land for a meagre living.


The uncle mentioned earlier decided to fund the education of his cousins', aged 8 and 12. He concluded that the difference in fortunes was solely due to the stark contrast in education. While Koong-koong's offsprings flourished in the Malaysian education system, his sister and her children were denied learning beyond the basic which was made worse by the Cultural Revolution.

Now, here I am, blogging about this filled with immeasurable gratitude for my Koong-koong for making that particular turn in time. But then, I could have been the dude who started Alibaba.com or mayhaps turned out to be some celebrated dissident writer living in the West. Or a successful farmer. Or buried, after being shot for stealing food.

Conjectures all. We are here, now. Let's cross the bridge, take the turn when we get to it, right? And may God guide and bless whichever path we take, as He has blessed my Koong-koong's.

16 comments:

Lily G said...

I've often told my cousins if our grandparents (my grandfather particularly) didn't migrate to Malaysia, the only way we could have come here is as maids.

Brilliant post! Very enlightening in the light of most Malaysians' dissatisfaction with the country.

Sorry yeop. Tulis essay pulak. hiks.

Da Winged Acrophobic said...

lily, very true. Kinda puts everything in perspective. This is the longest you've written here. Thanks. A longer one next time?

Shionge said...

Hiya Wingy, thanks for sharing this wonderful pictures as well as the story.

My Dad came from China and make frequent trips back to the village....now I don't know how to scan the picture & post it in my blog :(

GoRgEoUs CeO said...

Wow.. I wished my grandmother kept those old photos.

My maternal grandparents are Chinese Peranakan.. I wish I can show you too, those photos of them in their Baba and Nyonya outfits taken in Malacca.

east43street said...

Wingy, this is a very good post. First, you really look like your grandfather, with the same hair style that had been passed on.

Second, it is an eye opener that there is still hope in Malaysia.

Third, the old adage goes, no good deed goes unpunished.... it is happening in the Malaysian politics too (Tun Mahathir, his good deed is forgotten and 'they' are punishing him)

Fourth, my grandfather died the same way, accused of assisting Japanese during the Japanese occupation

....and do you have the photo to share on your trip there?

Desparil said...

your grandpa's hairstyle is the same as my granpa's. must be the in thing back then..

akula said...

Thats very interesting piece bro. If your Koong2 decided not to stay here, we would never be brothers. Imagine that.

D.N.A.S said...

My mom, in one of her photos from the 50s has the same hairstyle with your grandmother.
I love looking at old photos of my family members especially those I never get the chance to meet. I look a lot like my paternal grandmother. She died 2 years before I was born.

east43street said...

Selamat mengundi bro. Undilah dengan bijak.

Anonymous said...

It's amazing how pieces of yellowing celluloid can hold so much. A beautifully written heartwarming tale. Just goes to show how much our choices shape and define us in the end.

Anonymous said...

oh no more new story?

Redhead said...

ah.... so you are going on the Writers' strike as well, ay? :P

Da Winged Acrophobic said...

Strike halted. Now working on script.

Cosmic_GurL said...

Bila nak update ni?

east43street said...

Weii... wingy. Aiseyman..... dah nak masuk 2 bulan dah nih. Ini sudah lebih man!!

Da Winged Acrophobic said...

It feels so good to be missed!