“My grandmother and my mother’s pillows are made of porcelain.”

This was my mother’s ‘pillow’. My children kept it in the cupboard without mother’s knowledge. The porcelain pillow helped her to avoid messing up her hair. But I wonder how she slept. It’s so uncomfortable. I think this artifact went all the way back to her marriage day. I think it formed part of her marriage dowry. It was bought in Singapore. The holes at the side of the headrest could be for her hairpins. She had quite a few- gold ones; some made of jade. The porcelain pillow was no longer used once she cut her hair. It was difficult to find someone to help her bind her hair. Before she cut her hair, she had to get the approval from her mother. People in the past respect the decisions of their elders. I think this happened in the 50s when we were staying in Cavan Road. 4 of us, my grandmother, mother, father and me squeezed into the rented room in a 4-storey shophouse. My grandmother, mother and I slept in one bed. It was made of wooden planks. So at night we would roll the planks out and rolled it back in the morning. My grandmother and my mother’s pillows are made of porcelain. Mine was not. She kept the pillow as a memory of her life, to share that memory with her grandchildren.