Grandchildren – The dots connecting generations
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When a child is born
so do mother and father
grandma and grandpa!
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I am staying with my daughter, who has just delivered a baby girl! The Confinement Centre serves creative and wonderful dishes! I love the pink pau for tea!
Grandchildren are the dots that connect the lines from generation to generation.
Lois Wyse
It’s my life!
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Listen to this song ‘It’s my life! ‘ by my sister and myself.
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“You only live once, but if you do it right, once is enough.” — Mae West
Alone, but still shine!
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powerfully alone
shiningly alone
finding strength
and purpose
in solitude
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Look up at the stars!
Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious. And however difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at.
It matters that you don’t just give up.
Two mothers met after a decade. Both were not close as working colleagues. But common circumstances brought them together.
Mum A was worried if her only daughter, a radiographer, could look after her only brother who has schizophrenia but is capable of self-care in his daily activities of living.
Mum B held her hand and said, “I am grateful that my younger daughter is independent in her activities of daily living. Have you read about that royal family who doted on their only disabled child who needed almost total care? They have to feed him, bathe him, and move him in an adult-like stroller? For life? The whole family appeared on the front page. It was a good example of destigmatization for the disabled.”
Mum A put her hands together, closed eyes, and said, “Yes, I must be thankful with what I have! “
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Pottery – container with twisted handle
The above is one of my pottery pieces.
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“Nobody has ever measured, not even poets, how much the heart can hold.” —Zelda Fitzgerald
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What would our last ten years be like?
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Stretching
biological fitness
into our chronological years,
as we age,
makes a huge difference!
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Singing ‘ Menaruh Harapan’ (Pinning hope)
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He who has health, has hope. And he who has hope, has everything.
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Listen to this song, ‘Menaruh harapan‘. It is one of the earlier malay songs that I tried to sing. It took me many attempts before I was satisfied and got it posted. It did very well when first released.
Practice makes perfect. Nowadays, I can belt it out effortlessly!
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Reading enriches (a senryū)
Reading enriches
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In the world of books
I devoured, shelf after shelf
enriching my mind
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In reading, I learn
many places, I travel
feeling others’ souls
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Deep into my books
many people, I became
their lives understood
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Moments of silence
the reader appreciates
peaceful solitude
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“Show me a family of readers, and I will show you the people who move the world.”
Napoléon Bonaparte
“If you don’t like to read, you haven’t found the right book.”
J.K. Rowling (Joanne Rowling)
How the differently-abled bake buns.
Introduction
Anna watched from a near distance to the kitchen. There were two groups. May, Lionel, Tom and Kenneth were in team one.
How they make and bake buns.
“Alright, now weigh 500 grams of flour!” came the instruction. May stepped forward. She was scooping into the container of flour. “No, I do first. I am the team leader!” Lionel intercepted.
Smack! Lionel was stunned; the right side of his face was whitened with flour. Tom grasped Lionel’s right hand towards May’s face. Both Tom and May are non-verbal. Lionel held back his hand and his tears, “no, mummy said, ‘boy cannot hit a girl!'”
May threw the scoop angrily on the table. Lionel took over.
“One… two… three…four hundred,” Lionel looked at his teammates, hesitatingly. “Should I take away some?” He was returning the scooped flour to the container. (Lionel’s mum later told Anna about Lionel’s difficulties and mixing-ups with numbers).
Kenneth stopped his hand midway. He guided Lionel to return the flour into the bowl on the scale. They added another spoon, “… there! 500 gram!” He clapped away the flour on his hands. Then he stood behind them again; seemingly unfocused.
His teammates looked up at him now with new admiration!
After mixing all the ingredients in the electric mixing bowl, the dough was divided into four.
“You are going to do your own hot-dog buns. Divide your dough into smaller balls like this…” the chef teacher showed them. He shoved the smoothened ball under a big enamel bowl. All of them were attentive, except Kenneth.
“Kenneth, Kenneth, your turn!” Lionel went to call him. He was in the garden in front of the kitchen. Lionel showed and guided Kenneth on how to divide and roll the dough.
Later, while waiting for the baked hot-dog buns to cool down, it was washing-up time!
“Kenneth, your trays are not clean! Wash again, see, here?” Lionel put the trays back into the huge sink. He was a good team leader. His mum told Anna that Lionel wanted to work in a bakery shop one day.
While waiting for their children, Anna met up with the other mothers. She admired their patience and persistence in driving their autistic children for the classes the last three years.
Conclusion
Baking lessons were part of Kenneth’s rehabilitation and socializing activities for one and a half years. But, Anna knew that Kenneth would make a better food connoisseur than a bakery chef!
Chen Song Ping, 12 January 2021
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Reflections:
Does Kenneth still bake buns? No, he doesn’t.
But the classes above had allowed him to learn how to socialise with others.
And he loves to eat hot-dog buns!
Chen Song Ping, 2023
Is there someone in the closet?
Harry Potter’s “No one deserves to live in a closet” talks about the homosexuals and social stigma. Dave Mowry relates similarly about “Stepping Out Of The Mental Health ‘Closet’.”
Then I got sick. I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. My life changed. people looked at me differently. Stop inviting me for coffee and other activities. - Dave Mowry
Stigma affects many people with AIDs, autism, mental disorders, homosexuality, and now, recovered COVID-19. It threatens to imprison them in ‘closets’.
Education and destigmatizing for better societal acceptance are important.
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Chen Song Ping 