My Grandmother's Mung Beans Porridge

 In the pioneering days the Foochow farmers and pioneers were mainly subsistence farmers and rubber planters. Most could paddle their own boats to go from place and place and few would have the time to visit the bazaar.

According to my mother when she was growing up in the 1920's and 1930's they did not even have cash to see any of the sin seh and Western doctors in town. There was a Dr. Chew Chin Nang and Dr. Chiu Nai Zheng and later, a Dr. Xavier (pre war and post war).

The Lau King Howe Hospital was started on the year my mother was born, 1926.

For small fevers and a bit of coughing, my grandmother would give the usual home remedies.

One of the remedies for fever was green bean porridge.

According to many of my relatives it was a really good cure, but it did not cure meningitis or brain fever. 

A special tablet, called Gana Bian was also used to help with colds and fever. During the Japanese Occupation, one of my aunts had very high fever and she was so delirious that she even attempted to jump from the window of Grandfather's house. But luckily she was saved by watchful relatives. Sixth Uncle also had very high fever during the war and he too was saved by Gana tablets.

In the 1950's, several of my cousins and my own brother had meningitis in their childhood. My brother Hsiung was given treatment in the hospital too and that really frightened my parents. Later he was treated by doctors like Wong Muk Foo, and Dr. Chew (Suk Chee).