Page 137 - Stories from our Grandparents

M Ping Yi Secondary School Born 1929 One day, my siblings both had high fever and they passed away the
Mdm Hijjah rahman
y name is Hijjah Rahman,
I was born in 1929.
next day due to unhygienic conditions and lack of medical attention.
By Nadia Sharon Binte Moh Omar
Currently, in 2018, I am
Both siblings died at a young age. The war was full of hardship, but
89 years old. My birth country
was Malaya (Malaysia). My father had a food catering business and I somehow managed to survive through it all. I considered myself
extremely lucky to not have the same fate as the others.
I would always help him with his job. I would always ask my village if they
wanted food. The next morning, I would prepare the food and deliver it to “During the war, whenever I walked along the streets,
their homes. My main mode of transport was by foot. Even though there there was bound to be a head hanging somewhere. I
were trams, bullock carts, carriages and rickshaws, I still remember the sight, flies surrounding the rotting head
preferred to walk. Before I migrated to Singapore at 12 and some were still dripping with blood. The Japanese
years old, in the year 1941, I lived in Malaya, present day
Malaysia. My favourite childhood memory was in Malaya. soldiers had beheaded innocent people and hung their
I got to see the British monarchy. We knew all the heads around, including places like police stations. It was
royalties including Queen Mary. However, I did not such an inhumane sight that I cannot ‘unsee’ up until today.
have many happy childhood memories as they were Whenever we saw a Japanese soldier walking along the
all ruined when war broke out in Singapore.
street, we were expected to show respect and bow. If not,
My family and I migrated to Singapore in 1941. In my family, I have four other we would never be able to see the light of day again.”
siblings excluding me. I had one elder brother, one elder sister and two
younger siblings. I did not attend school as Malay families discouraged We used the public pipe station for water. However, since
females to go to school. We only learned about religion and the Arabic some of us were not able to carry buckets of water over long
language. It was thought that sooner or later we would get married and have distances, we had to buy water from people who could. I got
children anyway, hence I did not have the chance to attend school when married at the age of 16, in the year 1945, after which I became
my brothers did. Most of the time, I helped with my parents’ food catering a full time housewife and had children.
business which was our main source of income.
Finally, the war ended and the British took over Singapore. Things
The Japanese occupied Singapore in 1942. During the Japanese started to get better and thankfully my elder brother survived the war.
Occupation, my family suffered many losses. My elder brother was He eventually got married and started his own family. I made sure my
in the Malay regiment since he was educated and could speak children received education and my husband supported this decision.
English. He fought against the Japanese. At that time, food was very My elder brother and sister-in-law passed away and I took on the
unsanitary and rice was mixed with some white substance. I could responsibility to raise his seven children as my own seven children. In
not tell what it was. My elder sister’s body could not digest the rice the kampung days, we reared chickens, turkeys, ducks and many more
properly so she ended up having diarrhoea and lost a lot of fluid. animals so food was sustainable. Over time, things got easier due to
Eventually, she passed away, leaving me and my two younger siblings. modernisation. In those days, I really had to fight for my own survival
and I saw many grotesque sights. Nowadays, we have hospitals and
mobile phones which are very convenient. It is really unlike the old
days where there were no medical aid and we had to do many things
by ourselves. So, do not take the things we have for granted.

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