Page 69 - Cherished Memories of Yesteryears - A Collection of Grandparents' Life Experiences

“Life is precious, so protect it like the most precious thing ever.”

My grandmother was only six years old when the very comforting for my grandmother when the
Japanese invaded Singapore. She had difficulty Japanese soldiers and civilians were repatriated to
finding food to survive and had to hide when the Japan. She was most frightened when the Japanese
Japanese troops invaded her family’s home to take soldiers released the political prisoners imprisoned
their belongings. Every day, she and her friends for a while.
had to learn the Japanese language at school, as
they were forced to speak in Japanese and sing My grandmother was terrified when she saw the
the Japanese national anthem, Kimigayo, or they death of a brave soldier called Adnan Bin Saidi.
would suffer a terrible punishment. After the end of the Japanese occupation, my
grandmother could not forgive the Japanese for
In general, living conditions in Singapore were their actions and the impact of their actions. She
very poor during the Japanese occupation due to the had to earn money to support her family as they
lack of many essentials. Her family lived mainly were short of cash, so she started working at an ice
on sweet potatoes. The banana notes were the kachang stall from seven to ten. My grandmother,
currency issued during the Japanese occupation. Sapiah Mamat, still talks about her experiences
during the war. After the war, she found the love of
As the war progressed, there were food shortages in her life. Sapiah Mamat would not have found her
Singapore. Many schools had to grow their food, “one and only” without the Japanese occupation.
and gardening became part of the curriculum.
Students were encouraged to produce a variety of Nor Syuhada Binte Azrin
local vegetables. Towards the war’s end, it wasn’t Primary 6.6 (2022)

Cherished Memories of Yesteryears 65