The Foochow bride in the 1950's would arrive at the bride groom's house with some bridal gifts which came in odd numbers, 3,5.7 or 9. They were carried by bamboo poles and would have been paraded around the town in the bridal procession, or bridal car, brass band and all. It was a grand procession if the families were rich and famous. Fire crackers would be fired to add to the merriment. Every one would come out of their homes and shops to the street to watch the parade.
As kids we were very excited to watch this exciting event!!
The most important gift desired by a daughter was a sewing machine. She would look forward to a Singer Machine as she had contributed a lot to her family as she grew up.
Girls had to rear domestic animals, wash clothes, tap rubber. And they would have been given any pocket money. So the hardworking girl would be given more bridal gifts than a lazier one. When my cousin was about to be married, at the early age of 19, my uncle and aunty had to scraped some money together to buy her a good set of bridal gifts.
According to relatives, they even had to borrow some money for exigencies, in case the wedding feast cost more, although it was held at home and all domestic anmials and especially the pigs were raised by themselves.
My dear cousin Lau Kiing Huong was given a good set of bridal gifts and her most treasured gift which
After her wedding, she lived in Sg. Bidut with her in laws and her husband had 11 silbings.
It was her duty as the eldest daughter in law to make clothes for them, especially for the Chinese New Year. Her mother in law would buy the materials and she would make many clothes for her in laws, especially the children. She would do all her household chores before she could sit down and rest a bit. The she would be sewig away.
One of her favorite sewing activities was the making of patchwork quilts.
All her baby clothes were sewn by her because in those days, no good mother would spend money to buy ready made clothes.
Her mother in law told her,"Make the clothes yourself for the children, they would last longer and no matter how much you wash the clothes, they would not be worn out. And indeed a lot of people would seek her out, to ask her to use her sewing machine to do some patching of worn clothes. Rural villagers were very frugal. Nothing was wasted, even if the clothes were a bit torn and worn out."
she loved till she passed away two years ago. She had loved her sewing machine.
In those days, it was common to refer to a daughter's marriage as a "sale". A father might even say, "I have sold off my eldest daughter." Though crude and even impolite, we Foochow girls accepted the unpolitically correct term as a matter of fact.
Yes, when time came for us to be married, we were sold off. Some parents made a killing, others made a loss.
People in those days believed in fate.
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