Why My Grandfather always Carried an Umbrella

 My grandfather Tiong Kung Ping taught all of us to be frugal, from a very young age.

I remember he would take me by the hand and accompanied me to go by bus to his Sg. Merah house on the hill. We always called his house, The House on the Hill. He would never take a taxi even though at that time it would cost him 1 dollar only.

Besides he would never ask Grandma Siew to pick him up from Sibu town. That was because a bus ride would cost less than the fuel she would spend on her car.

He bought his first car ( after Grandma Siew passed her driving test in Sibu) a second hand from my Second Aunt in Singapore. She had carefully shipped it from Singapore and the price of the car was just what he wanted to pay for. My aunt must have arranged it with my 7th Uncle, Sia Kie Ming to ship the car together with his imported goods, thus again, getting a discount for my grandfather. My Uncle Sia was an importer of goods for Sibu and he had a big office in Singapore.

When my grandfather travelled to Singapore he also obtained discounted passage from my uncle Sia. He loved that.

When the bus to Sg. Merah was late, he would still wait and not take a taxi. He would be hungry and hot but he would rather save the money than spend it on a taxi.

Upon alighting from the bus, at Kwong Ann Primary School, he would walk all the way to the house about 1/2 km, He would open his umbrella and walk slowly home. His neighbours would know that he was saving his money .......and give him an understanding wave.

At noon, the sun was hot and he would lose his appetite for his lunch, which Grandma Siew would have

 

prepared for him. He would just be a little annoyed.

But if it was raining, it would be cooler and he would stop by the parsonage to have a chat with Rev Ho Siew Liong. Like most Foochows , Grandfather would not get himself wet by a rain which came down on a hot day. It was called Nik Tou Yii or Sunshine Rain which in those days would cause a cold as they believed.

My grandfather, like many other Foochow men, would always carry an umbrella wherever he went.

He taught us good Foochow habits of covering our head from the sun and rain using an umbrella. Health was wealth according to him. Never waste money on doctors. And he never wanted to be admitted to a hospital.