Mdm Lim Pian Tee (2E4 Xiuhui's maternal granny)

My Story 

My maternal grandmother, Lim Pian Tee, was born in China in the year of 1931. Her parents gave birth to a total of ten children. She has five brothers and four sisters, and she is the fourth in the family. Her father worked as a farmer and he was the only breadwinner in the family. Her father would set up a stall along the street and sell the vegetables to the villagers. Whenever they were free, they would help their father by taking care of the stall. Her mother was a housewife, who did the chores and took care of the children.

At the age of eleven, my grandmother attended a Chinese-speaking school, and decided to pursue her dreams in studies. They studied Chinese, Malay, and Buddhist Scriptures. She remembered a male teacher, Mr. Wang, who gave money to the students who had financial problems, and my grandmother was one of them. He also gave his students remedial for the subjects they were poor in. If they were found talking during lesson time, they will be beaten by the teacher with a ruler, and the teachers would throw the chalk at them. Unfortunately, she stopped schooling at sixteen, as her parents thought that girls at that time should do the housework and take care of the siblings.

The children hobbies were to play five stones, fly kites, rear fighting fish, play hop-scotch, or glass marbles, and to watch opera shows. If they did anything wrong or offensive, they would be punished using the cane and they were supposed to kneel down in front of their grandparents' tablets at the altar to reflect on their wrongdoings. She would help her mother to take care of her siblings, and she would help out with the housework. (eg. sweeping the floor, cooking, and feeding her siblings) She would also help her father to plant the vegetables when she was free, while her brothers would help their father to sell them.

At the age of eighteen years old, my grandmother went for many job interviews. She found herself a job as a seamstress. A few weeks after, my grandfather went to her shop to make a suit, and he also asked her out to watch opera shows. After a few weeks, they started meeting each other everyday. As days went by, they fell in love. She was married to my grandfather when both of them were nineteen. They had a simple wedding ceremony, as they were poor in those days and they could not afford a grand ceremony. They only invited their relatives and a few close friends. They also served tea to each other's relatives who were older than them.

My grandmother did not go through World War Two, but her mother had mentioned it to her before. She said that the days during World War Two were tough. In order not to being caught by the Japanese, they would hide in the cemetery. Men were being caught to work for the Japanese, and ladies were raped by the Japanese. Thus, the young ladies would try their best to dress up as old ladies so that the Japanese would not be interested in them. They ate tapioca and potatoes that can be found near the cemetery. The Japanese would also knock on every door to look for girls, and they would search through the house. Her mother would act as an old lady, and she managed to survive the war.

My grandmother advises us not to be racist, and to help others when they are in need as best as we can. Lastly, we must treasure everyone around us. 

Lin Xiuhui (10)

2E4