my earliest memories of schooling

when i was in primary one in owen primary school, together with two other older boys, i was ridden to school in a trishaw. my mother paid a neighbour for this transport arrangement. one of the older boys would relieve me of my daily allowance of ten cents. i did not report this extortion to my mother.

i was then living in kampong chia heng, about 4km from the school. i carried one of those mini suitcases to school. nobody could read or write english at home and so i had difficulty picking up the language. when my mother asked me to read my text book, i remember making some strange noises which must have sounded english to my mother and it pleased her. one day she got another neighbour's son who was in a secondary school to check my reading. that was when my ability to 'fake' was found out.

one day in july that year, i was attracted by this wayang performance near the school. i wandered off to the site and so missed the transport home. when it grew dark, i became afraid as i did not know my bearing. i tried to recall the route taken by the trishaw rider but ended up confused. i was on the verge of tears as i stopped outside a malay house. a kind malay man on bicycle asked me where i lived. i was able to tell him my address. somehow he managed to assure me that he would help me get home. i rode pillion on his bicycle and when we finally reached my house, my parents were so relieved that they did not cane me for my wrong doing.