Chong Saw Saw (susu)

I found this photo of Susu. For us Chongs, the male in our generation carry the middle name of Boo and the female's are Saw (pronounce as Sue), hence we have Saw Lee,. Saw Phek and this lady's name is Saw Saw but we call her Ah Uwan (it means finished).

Once I asked my uncle why we call her Ah Uwan and I was told that since he had too many daughters and had hoped that the line of daughters would end with Ah Uwan! Same as my father, he named me Bee Ean (to end the Saw line) hoping that after me he would not have anymore daughters! (fat chance.... after that we had Bee Lee and Sue Hua and my uncle had Bee Yong :P !!)

Why Susu? What was it I wanted to write about her? Oh, that she is my age, we sat next to each other from Standard One to standard Six, she is warm, simple minded and childlike. Things that she said and did are still fresh in my memory.

She was born in August, the same year that I was born, though I was born in November. No matter how I argued with her, she insisted that I am older than her. You see, 11 is bigger than 8, right?!

She could not swallow any medication as long as it is in the tablet form. I laughed every time I saw how she took her tablets. First she tried the normal way, but sadly, all the water finished but the pills were still there. Then she tried putting it in between her bread, that too failed. Sometimes she would insert it in the banana but poor her, the banana would be gone but the pills remained in her mouth!

The best times we had were during the Chinese New Year, when we would meet up. Both of us love movies and this was when we'd have our movie marathons. Our house was 1/2 an hour's bus ride to Alor Star and we would go early in the morning to buy 6pm tickets for a movie at Cathay, then walk to Choong San and Choon Hwa cinemas to buy tickets for the 12.30pm and 3pm shows. Next, we'd get to Rex cinema and that's where we would watch out first movie (a matinée). When that movie ended, we'd jump on the trishaw, rush for the 12.30 show, and then walk to the other cinema for the 3pm show and finally, proceed to Cathay for the last show.

I left our kampong when I was 17, got married and found the Baha'i Faith and my life changed.
She remained in Alor Star, got married and had a son. Sad to say that we hardly meet each other now, except when there is a funeral and there are always too many people and too many things to catch up with others.

I miss her a lot and I wonder if she misses me or not. I am going to ask her that the next time I see her!