Granny's passing

My maternal grandmother, Mdm Ooi Soo Cheow, passed away peacefully on 30th April 2008. She was 96 years. The funeral was held over 3 days at my home in Segamat. The photo here shows the altar - the funeral was according to Buddhist ceremonial rites. She leaves behind 2 daughters (my uncle passed away >10 years ago), 10 grandchildren and 6 great-grandchildren. She was buried in Nilai Memorial Park on Friday May 2nd 2008.

My granny was from Penang. She married and later settled down in Teluk Intan. She had 3 children : eldest, a son and 2 daughters (my mother being the youngest). I only get to visit my granny during the school holidays when my family would travel up north. However, I was not very close to my granny as I can't speak Hokkien very well..... but no problems with understanding the Hokkien conversations. My granny was then already a widow and she lived in a 3-storey shophouse together with my late grand-uncle and his family. Her main duty was to prepare meals for the workers there (My late grand-uncle has a 'kiam hu tiam' business).

Things changed after my grand-uncle passed away, as my granny was no longer needed to cook, so she stayed with my aunt (my mother's sister) in Teluk Intan for a few years. Then she came to stay with my mother in Segamat after my aunt was not able to take care of her. My granny stayed in Segamat for a few years - she was healthy and even able to walk even in her early nineties. When I got married in 2003, she was able to make the trip up to KL for the tea ceremony and wedding dinner. Soon after that, she had a nasty fall which confined her to a wheelchair. That was when she started to become weaker and weaker and eventually she became senile and bedridden. An Indonesian maid was employed to take care of her.

I really respect my granny as I find her a strong and capable lady - she had gone through a lot especially during the World War II period without her husband by her side - and raising 3 children in those difficult times.