In the wee hours of the morning, SLing, JWee,SYuen, Wei, mom-in-law and myself headed towards Rasah cemetery for 'cheng beng'. Prior to this, SLing had made arrangements for this as she has not cleaned up or visited her dad's graveyard for about 20 years now. It was really a simple and small request from her in which I readily accepts and also, it would be an opportunity for our entire family to clean up the area together with Wei and my mom-in-law.So preparations were made with the other cousins and relatives for 'cheng beng' and to meet up at about 7.15am at the foothill. SLing had informed the family that her dad's grave was at one end corner of the hill top. I could see that it meant a lot to her just to be able to get back at her dad's grave.
SLing woke up early today to do some marketing with her mom while we slept for a while before waking up at about 6.15am. Then , as we freshened up, we got ourselves ready. Then it was off to the cemetery. There wasn't a big crowd then and we met with Uncle Thian Wah and his family. Soon, SLing's uncles and cousins joined in. We made the trek up the hill and all I can say is that it was sure a climb up! I wasn't huffing or puffing but merely confirmed that I wasn't fit physically at all though I made it up without much hassle. I was a little out of breath but then so were the others. Anyway, it was quite a long way up while strong bushes & other vegetation had found their way at SLing's dad'd grave. So, the first thing Wei and I did were to clear out the thick vegetation around the right side of the grave. There were many thorny plants and thick bushes. In no time, Wei and I did our best in clearing up the place. This time around reddish ants had made their nests at around my father-in-law's grave site. 
Surprisingly, though many went through my trousers and hands, I didn't feel a single sting. I could only thank God for that! Though it was uncomfortable to feel these ants walking all over you, I am mightily grateful that I managed to get on with the clearing without any harm. I noted that at the top end of the grave boundary, it was written "1975". That was the year my father-in-law passed away. Gosh! That's 34 years ago and no wonder it was nostalgic for SLing. To think that Wei and mom-in-law had been cleaning the place for the past 20 years without us elevated a sense of respect and admiration of the dedication all these years. So, to Wei & mom-in-law, my hats off to you for keeping the place clean and tidy all these while!Anyway, JWee tried his hands at painting the Chinese characters with gold paint, however, I took over from him and finished off the wordings the best I could as the scorching sun and heat were simply too much. 
Then everyone took turns to do prayers and all that while we, [ SLing, JWee,SYuen and me ] abstained. We did a short prayer together and prayed for everyone's safety during this time. Wei and mom-in-law are aware of our stand and we were comfortable while they were very understanding. For me, personally, there is nothing to fear the dead, it's the living that we should be aware of because the dead can do no harm to us but the living is the more dangerous one! For me, I am just glad to be part of this family and to be able to do my bit of clearing and cleaning up my father-in-law graveyard.
I realised too that 'cheng beng' is just not a religious thing or a cultural thing. It is a time of fellowship, actually. You see, relatives from far and wide would gather on a particular day, such as this, to come together, meet up and even catch up on family matters.
It is a really good time of fellowshipping and bond. You may argue that there would be better occasion and better place to do this rather than the graveyard but stop and think for a while. There are only a few occasions when we actually get to meet all our relatives. To put it simply - weddings , birthdays, deaths or 'cheng beng'! There is no need for us to get all religious and riled up self-righteous when it comes to this. An occasion to gather, to meet up and to have a great time of fellowshipping are still the best. I could hear SLing chatting up with her relatives about the times they were up at the hills, the things they do and also, the good times with parents & relatives. Now, those things are priceless indeed - the good ol' days or rather sweet memories.
Today, I am just happy to be a part of what SLing misses a lot over the years. Afterall, she has always wanted to do this but it clashes with the time we spent on cleaning my dad's graveyard whenever 'cheng beng' comes. So, today, I am extremely glad that our family [ SLing, J Wee , SYuen and myself ] were able to help out this time and do whatever is necessary for 'cheng beng'. Someone asked us " Would we do it again next year? My answer : ~ SURE, why not?~
Then everyone took turns to do prayers and all that while we, [ SLing, JWee,SYuen and me ] abstained. We did a short prayer together and prayed for everyone's safety during this time. Wei and mom-in-law are aware of our stand and we were comfortable while they were very understanding. For me, personally, there is nothing to fear the dead, it's the living that we should be aware of because the dead can do no harm to us but the living is the more dangerous one! For me, I am just glad to be part of this family and to be able to do my bit of clearing and cleaning up my father-in-law graveyard.I realised too that 'cheng beng' is just not a religious thing or a cultural thing. It is a time of fellowship, actually. You see, relatives from far and wide would gather on a particular day, such as this, to come together, meet up and even catch up on family matters.
It is a really good time of fellowshipping and bond. You may argue that there would be better occasion and better place to do this rather than the graveyard but stop and think for a while. There are only a few occasions when we actually get to meet all our relatives. To put it simply - weddings , birthdays, deaths or 'cheng beng'! There is no need for us to get all religious and riled up self-righteous when it comes to this. An occasion to gather, to meet up and to have a great time of fellowshipping are still the best. I could hear SLing chatting up with her relatives about the times they were up at the hills, the things they do and also, the good times with parents & relatives. Now, those things are priceless indeed - the good ol' days or rather sweet memories.Today, I am just happy to be a part of what SLing misses a lot over the years. Afterall, she has always wanted to do this but it clashes with the time we spent on cleaning my dad's graveyard whenever 'cheng beng' comes. So, today, I am extremely glad that our family [ SLing, J Wee , SYuen and myself ] were able to help out this time and do whatever is necessary for 'cheng beng'. Someone asked us " Would we do it again next year? My answer : ~ SURE, why not?~
No comments:
Post a Comment