Gracy Bee

Early Years II

Posted on June 12th, 2007 by GracyBee.
Categories: Memory Lane.

While my cousins and I loved one another and were best play mates, our parents were not in the same position as us. The family pressures and problems thus lead to a big change in my life forever.

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At the tender age, my bro & I was sent over to Singapore for education. A lot of people mistaken that our family was rich and hence afford for overseas education. Sorry folks, that is not true. In my previous post I did mentioned that my parents was just handed over a business laden with debts. YES, with debts and family problems that my parents has to work doubly hard and take up extra jobs to pay our fees and expenses. WHY? so that we wouldn’t faced with unnecessary pressure from home. What a irony that while our GGM doted on us, our uncles & their wives were the different stories.

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Anyway I wondered how I have agreed to such arrangement to go foreign land. I only remembered this day.

One hot day in year 1985

In the car

Mum: Do you want to go Singapore to study?
Me: (holidaying??) YESSS!
Mum: ok

That was it really. Before I knew it, we were brought to Singapore and started our official schooling in Primary school. Still as blur as sotong, we didn’t even realise mum and dad not with us in Singapore. Perhaps we were not always with parents most of the time that was why we don’t quite miss them??

Now when I think back, I think that was quite a scary arrangement, esp for a 7 year old. Phew!!

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I stayed with my aunt (mom’s eldest sister). While staying there, we knew that we don’t quite belong to the family and so some arguements did existed between my aunt and her family; or us and her family. I think she faced quite tremendous pressure at that time. So at the beginning, I have to admit things weren’t going quite smoothly for about 2 years. I know my aunt loved us as her children, but sometimes the pressures don’t come from her but from her family. Thus I had what I called the strictest curfew which I don’t wish to mention here.

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During this time, they got a dog named Miki and he was a blessing to us. He treated us as his family and he was our main source of comfort and companion when we were feeling down. With him around, our lives did get better and I think he was the source that put us together as a family, though not yet a good one.

Despite all that, I did enjoy my school and life in Singapore as years flew so much that I have embraced Singapore as my home and my aunt’s family as mine. I have made good friends along the way too. (though there are some not so nice friendships, but hey, part and parcel of life)

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It was not till when I went up to JC and the birth of my niece that I thoroughly enjoyed my life in Singapore. I have my new freedom: I control my own money, has my own set of keys for the 1st time, the new niece into the family, the relationship I had that time made my life more complete.

I was in Singapore for the duration of 13 years.

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