My mum managed my late father's legacy well and slowly saved enough money to develop piece of land with neigbhours. This was how she had her first shop lot in Brooke Drive. My late grandfather had willed on small piece of land with wooden houses to my late father. My father died two years after my grandfather, when my youngest brother was only 11 months old. The property was caveated.
These small houses were for rent and we saw many families who moved in and out, while many stayed for more than 20 years and prospered. Even when the land was developed, several families continued to live in the shop houses, and continued to be my mother's tenants. My mother received only about 200 dollars in total rental, not a big sum.
My mum allowed them to pay rent at the end of the month. This was called Nguok Mui ju in Foochow. Some even owed three months' rental.
My mum got along well with the tenants. When ever they came over to pay rents, they could also stay for a meal.
One old lady whom we called Short Ah Moo was always at our housem keeping mum company so to speak. I suppose her moanings and her conversation helped my widowed mother pass time. Mum was like a kind of counsellor, pursuading the old aunty to live and carry on living. And sure enough after more than 30 years, one of her sons prosered.
Mum would always give her a bowl of chicken soup with mee sua and she, of course, probably looked forward to it. At times, mum would give her some chicken meat without the noodles. Sometimes she would be angry and hit our dining table while cursing others. My brother I remember one day stopped her doing it.
Ah Moo would always visit us at about 11 in the morning when my mother finished cooking, and was resting and waiting for us to come home. When later she moved away, we sort of missed her.
Today one of her daughters in law remain our family friends and continue to do well.
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