“My second daughter bought the wristwatch for me when she received her pay.”

I have lived in Whampoa for around 38 years. I moved here in 1999. Before that, I was staying around Bukit MRT area with my father and mother. I lived there since I was 4 years old. I have 11 brothers and sisters. I had to help my mother take care of them, bathing…washing clothes…till my hands had blisters. So, I stopped studying after primary 4. There were some old houses there in the past. My father had a stall selling herbal soup. In the 80s, there was a TV series called Xiao Fei Yu (Small Flying Fish). They shot some scenes near my father’s stall. It’s hard work running the stall. There are many things to prepare in the morning even though the stall opened in the afternoon. We all helped out. He closed his stall in 1985 when the government moved everyone to the hawker centre. The stall was small over there and he was also getting old. After he retired, he travelled to China often. I also accompanied him to his hometown in Southern China.

My second daughter bought the wristwatch for me when she received her pay. My daughter studied computer science and she worked in the same industry after graduation. The watch is at least 23 years old. It is made in Japan and is still in very good working condition and looks new. I keep the watch in the box. It has another layer of protective sponge. I wear the watch during special occasions. My elder daughter would buy me clothes and the youngest daughter bought me an arm massager. They usually buy me something on their pay days.

After my husband passed away in 2007, I took in a mao mao (cat) from the ground floor. He is very smart. Look at the photos! (Showing the cat playing with the shoes). My daughter will comb his hair. One day, he refused to eat. We took him to the vet and he stayed there for a night. After visiting 3 vets, it was found that he had a cancerous tumor in one of his legs. He was later put to sleep by the vet. After his cremation, we spread his ashes in the sea.

I’m used to this place. If you asked me to live in Punggol, I will be lost. I will stay at home and slowly lose my mind. Here, I can go to Kwong Wai Sui to take part of the activities for seniors. I am a member there. Every year, I make a donation..$50, $100…There are exercises, and an elder care centre. It’s only a few steps from my home. You can stay there for the day, watch TV, play mahjong or chat with friends. I recall during one Mid-Autumn Festival, the MP (Member of Parliament) sang an old Cantonese song by 許冠傑 (Sam Hui Koon Kit) on stage.