| Siew May gave the Ong family two sons. The first son was a breech baby,
while the younger son was delivered by Caesarian section. Both
deliveries needed operations and required heart specialists to be present.
We decided to stop at two, because I did not want her to take any
unnecessary risk.
I knew she would have loved to have more children, especially
girls. Happily, this was compensated for by the two lovely
daughters-in-law we now have in the family. She was a wonderful and loving mother. Although she could neither swim nor cycle, she taught both Guan and Boon to swim and cycle. And as she worked long hours at the office, she even taught them how to cook their own lunches, when they were in primary and secondary schools. We did not have a maid in the house for several years in the late '70s and early '80s. She wanted everyone in the family to be as independent as she was. But she was, in every way, a devoted mother and a supportive wife, and performed her multiple roles with equal dedication. When I first met her at a party, she was only 15. She was an attractive and lively girl. It was not long before I discovered that she was a thrifty and highly principled girl as well. We began dating each other. Often we would meet in coffeeshops. Whenever we had lunch, she would insist on paying for her own lunch. Her argument was that her father gave her pocket money that was for her use only and that my father gave me pocket money that was for my use. So we should pay for our own lunches. At first, I tried to persuade her otherwise, but after two lunches, during which she stood her ground, I realised that it was futile to argue any further and we subsequently just went Dutch every time we met for lunch. It was the simple things that gave us the greatest joy. We were happiest just chit-chatting with each other, and whenever we had family gatherings. |
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