Page 117 - Stories from our Grandparents

WIP

Ang Geok Choo Born 1935

By Lee Jia Min
NYAA Council

was the eldest daughter of 10 siblings and thus had to take care sell cigarettes as usual but unfortunately was caught by the Japanese
of my younger siblings by cooking, doing the laundry and handling soldiers. They detained her and summoned my father to bail her.
various other household chores. As a result, I had no opportunity When my father arrived at the detention centre, he was caned and
I o to school while some of my younger siblings did. whipped. The soldiers said my father was lazy and that he put his
to g
wife’s life at risk by making her sell cigarettes. After admonishing him,
I was 9 years old during World War 2. I remember the loud sounds
of the fighter planes while everyone was running for their lives. Our the soldiers set both my parents free and they came home to tell
family moved from one place to another as we tried to escape from us what happened. After the incident, my father took up a job as a
the bombings. rickshaw puller.
Life was hard. We ate tapioca and sweet potatoes every day. We would
I remember being in a vehicle with my mother and steam them or eat the leaves of the sweet potato. We had no rice, and on
my other siblings and watching the bombs drop from good days we got to eat broken rice, those that were used as pig feed. Back
the sky. The car that was in front of us exploded then, we had no gas and my father would go chop wood so that we could
before my eyes. Everybody in the car died. The use them to start a fire. Sometimes the wood would get damp and I had to
driver immediately took a turn and all of us escaped dry them under the sun if not the fire would not start. Life was hard but I
never complained.
unscathed.
Singapore is definitely much better today compared to
Being young, I could not really understand the intensity of the the past, and I can now shop freely and buy the things I
bombings, but thinking back, we could have lost our lives that want. Back in the past, we were only given 2 sets of clothes
day. During the Japanese Occupation, my mother started selling during Chinese New Year and I had to wear those for the
cigarettes to make a living as we were too poor to afford anything. whole year, cutting up pieces of loose cloth to patch up my
She had just given birth to my fourth brother and was still nursing blouse whenever there were holes in it. My wish is for young
him. Whenever she left home she would entrust me to care for my Singaporeans to cherish and appreciate what they have
baby brother and take care of the house. One day, my mother left to now, as they are really lucky to be living in this era.

58 Grandma Stories Grandma Stories 59