Although she and her brother planted rice in the fields the harvest was still not enough for feed the whole family which consisted of my maternal grandfather who died during the war, my eldest uncle and his family of 5, my mother's brothers (Pang Sing and Pang Teck) and sister ( Yung). The rice was given to the younger ones and my grandfather while the others had to eat sweet potatoes or mixed rice with sweet potatoes.
It was hard for my mother who was the "labourer" of the family as she was still a teenager. When the war ended she was only 18 but she had been burdened as the main "bread winner" of the family.
Each day she also had to carry 20 buckets of water (using the bian dan), that is, to go to the river to carry the water home for cleaing, washing and cooking. She was tasked with washing of clothes, planting vegetables and rearing of pigs, besides cooking as her eldest sister in law had to look after the babies.
Besides, she had to be on the look out for Japanese soldiers who would come marching up the village path, or by the speed boats. It was a fearful time. And she had to hide her sister and younger brothers upstairs, while her eldest brother had to do the same with his wife and three young children.
She told us that she had to sacrifice a lot, like eating less, and working more, especially for her father who was already quite ill.
Their sweet potatos came all the way from Murudo, near Sarikei. They were grown by the in laws of uncle Pang Ping, mum's eldest brother. The soils of their farm were very fertile and every now and then, they would carry loads of sweet potatoes on foot all the way to Nang Chong.
Each day my mother had to use a home made metal shredder to prepare the potatoes which would be boiled. Rice would be cooked sparingly too. When meal times came, the aroma of rice cooking over the fire would make every one hungry.
To mum, a meal of sweet potatoes and roots of the plants would only be palatable by a sprinkling of some home made cincaluk.
Life was hard.
1 comment:
Am both fascinated and impressed by your story. Should conduct some studies on the anti-bacterial effect of the small crab against dipteria bacteria. Could be the fermentation producing lots of chemicals, some could be anti-bacterial. Do they still sell the small crab sauce these days?
Post a Comment