Those were the days

My sis and I were in the shop as we usually are on a Saturday afternoon. She had just returned from class and was telling mum and I about how she and her friends were talking about their childhood and the things they used to do. This brought back memories to me - some happy, some funny, some just weird.

One incident that I clearly remember was the time when I was attacked by a crow. A neighbour had left their rubbish bin uncovered and there was a crow picking at the plastic bag that was in the bin, trying to break through the plastic to get to the food. Mum saw and anticipated the mess that would happen and asked me to shoo the crow away and cover the bin. Being naive, I did just that - I shooed the crow away, covered the bin and ignited the crow's rage. As I walked back to where my mum was sitting (she was chit-chatting with a few other ladies), a crow (I'm pretty sure it was the crow I chased away) came directly at me and scratched my forehead!! I was attacked by a crow!! I had 3 red lines on my forehead; 3 lines that I showed to my mum to which she just laughed!! Ever since that incident, I've been wary of crows. Not to mention that they can fly and just conveniently unload poo on you or your car.

Another incident that came to mind involved my sister. She was about 3 or 4 years old and during this time, we used to follow my mum to the market. We had to walk through a kampung area where there were geese, dogs and my sister's favourite animal, CHICKENS. My sister is afraid of these birds although she just LOVES to eat them!! Anyway, back to my story...one morning when we were on the way home back from the market, mum saw a few chickens running loose and shouted at my sister, saying "Look! The chickens are running after you!". Being terrifed of the birds, my sister started running blindly and promptly ran into a pole! Haha!! This story has stuck in not only her memory but also my mum's and mine!

And then there were the times when the electricity would go off for a few hours and when it was dark outside, the neighbourhood adults (i.e. my dad) would put on bedak sejuk and "become" the ghost, scaring us kids. Or the time, when we had water-gun fights. My mum actually bought the super-power shooting water-gun to fight off us kids who had the cheap, sundry-shop type. When things got out of hand, out came the garden hose!! Boy were we soaked!

Leaving in a neighbourhood where most of the neighbours are friendly and respectful made all the difference. I can't imagine all these happening if we were living in an apartment of condo.

To watch my younger cousins now, as they grow, I actually feel for them as they will not have these kind of memories - of playing out in the garden with the neighbour's kids or having a parent actually join in the fun!

Sighs....what wonderful memories! Ones to treasure till the end..