Sibu Tales : Wide Feet and Spread Out Toes

Foochow women who were rubber tappers suffered agonising pains in their old age. Their toes and bones of their feet were arthritic as a result of the soaking they would always have when walking in the peat soils, tapping rubber trees in the early morning hours.

As they usually were barefooted, and very convenient too, their toes would grip the rubber tree roots tightly and they seldom fell. Many of my cousins actually told  me that they could run from tree to tree, like squirrels, using their toes to grip the roots of the rubber trees which were exposed and even a foot or two from the surface of the peat soil.

There was a lot of kung fu running from tree to tree and trying to tap as many as  50 to 80 trees each morning. Some adults could each tap up to 100 trees. Good and skilful tapping would never hurt the precious rubber trees.

As a result of their occupation, my aunts and cousins suffered from feet problems. Firstly they had trouble wearing badly manufactured shoes in the 60's. As a result they had to carry their shoes and walk barefooted to the restaurant or church. They would then walk back to the motor launch , usually Sin Hai Huong, at about 2 pm. to go back to their village . Immediately after they sat down in the motor launch they would examine their poor feet. They would be staring and letting out loud sighs at their red toes, and blisters on their toes, ankles etc. It would take two weeks or so to get over their aches and pains.

Every three months they would be selling their smoked rubber sheets to Hock Chiong , the middleman, which would then send the rubber sheets to Singapore. Their hard work would later help them buy houses in Sibu and send their children for further studies.

This kind of lifestyle will never be found again in Sarawak.