Just the other day I visited a friend of mine who against all odds still lives in a kampong. He had never moved away from his place of birth neither had he ever wanted city life. We met, had tea and talked of old times. He took me around his kampong where I still remember for I ‘sort of’ grew up with just about having the same surroundings like his. There was this perigi (well) - mighty big and mossed, the guava 'dusun' - red on the inside, a rarity now and what's kampong life without having the common denizens - ducks, chickens and goats and wat-nots.
This friend of mine, a degree holder in economics, blew away his varsity education and went into poultry farming taking up what was left of his late father. Till today, I wonder what makes him diligent taking up a life time job on a farm when he should be enjoying his days under bright city lights.
I asked him the reasons and got the answers neatly spelt out.
ME: “Times have changed man. Things are different now. You still dwelling in the same old farm thing. Well! I know its ur family and all but…..why do what your parents did. Do something different.”
HE: “What’s wrong with me into farming? I’m still earning a decent something. A wage at least.”
ME : “Common, don’t tell me you are comfortable living in a kampong earning a measly wage when I strongly believe you should be out there in some glass-pane high rise building driving the economy.” (mind u ….this chap is an Einstein in Economics...u have no idea to his economic ideals.)
HE: “You are right I should have but….” He paused a while then said, “Hmm…city life is fun, exciting but have you forgotten what we did, what we went thru’ when small. How can I leave all that and move away from this place?”
I chuckled and looked at my buddy. He was in a way…. right. I went nostalgic.
And this is what he meant…
Daylight - we played 'Star Wars' chasing dragonflies along the bunked path of paddy fields. We jumped into rivers and caught anything that swam and when it rained we swam swallowing half the river. With a tennis ball hardened and fuzz free, we played ‘whack' running and hiding up on tress. We monkeyed evading the ball for hours. It was our parents' noon matinee. We slurped coloured syrup ice balls all noon till our palms turned numb. !
We never had birthday parties. We renamed our friends and yelled out their forsaken nicknames. Grandmothers cursed us for rebranding their grandsons.
No one could reach us except our parents for they knew exactly how to get to us. They yelled. Amazing. Voices amplified like speakers. Goodness!!.
We got into fights and broke just about every thing in us, yet gleed with our mischief with our front teeth missing. School was the police station and teachers were the law.
Nights - we counted the little twinkles in the night sky not knowing our destiny and watched shooting stars stream across the verdant diamoned sky. [I betcha u had never seen one.]
My generation produced some of the best risk-takers, problem solvers and inventors ever.
The past 30 - 40 years have been an explosion of innovation and new ideas. We had freedom, failure, success and responsibility. We learned from our mistakes, our mischiefs, we fell...we cried, we got up and continued learning without a single complain. We improved every step of our way to reach the stars and true nuff' some of us DID reach the STARS.
Have I done injustice to my friend?
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