My eldest uncle and aunt from Sydney is back for a visit, so we went over to my maternal grandmother's place last night. My second uncle catered a sumptuous buffet for fifty, as they invited all our relatives. Thus, I got to see relatives whom we only got to see once a year or so, and also saw some who managed to take time off from the army, and those who came back from their overseas studies.
It was a good gathering, a group of us youngsters (well, not really young as we are all in our twenties, there is another group around my brother's age) just catching up with each other. It is a big difference being a graduate and a non-graduate, being an overseas graduate and a local graduate. An overseas graduate is just so much more worldly and knowledgeable. I feel so inadequate talking to them!
There were also a few of my Indonesian relatives around. I was trying to see if I could practice my Indonesian lessons, but failed so miserably! I mispronounced almost everything and my aunt had to correct me from scratch. I could not catch what she said whenever she was trying to speak to me a full sentence in Bahasa. I better brush up on my lessons!
My uncle was giving us a little history lesson on how my late grandfather became successful. Apparently he was involved in the transportation business, and set up his own business from scratch, and he actually made it big in Indonesia before branching out into Hong Kong where he passed away when my mum was only two years of age.
So my granduncle took over the business in Indonesia and made it bigger, and now my uncle is running the Singapore side of the business. My granduncle's youngest daughter is helping my uncle run the Singapore business too, and now my cousin (my uncle's eldest daughter) just joined the company as she is to be groomed as the successor.
Certain things are really priceless in life. Like a nice gathering with your extended family. Having an outing with the company of a friend or friends. Having time to yourself to do things you like. Spending quality time with people you care for and care about. All these mean so much more to me than just working my life away and being promoted and getting all the money in the world, and I will never trade these for anything else.
It was a good gathering, a group of us youngsters (well, not really young as we are all in our twenties, there is another group around my brother's age) just catching up with each other. It is a big difference being a graduate and a non-graduate, being an overseas graduate and a local graduate. An overseas graduate is just so much more worldly and knowledgeable. I feel so inadequate talking to them!
There were also a few of my Indonesian relatives around. I was trying to see if I could practice my Indonesian lessons, but failed so miserably! I mispronounced almost everything and my aunt had to correct me from scratch. I could not catch what she said whenever she was trying to speak to me a full sentence in Bahasa. I better brush up on my lessons!
My uncle was giving us a little history lesson on how my late grandfather became successful. Apparently he was involved in the transportation business, and set up his own business from scratch, and he actually made it big in Indonesia before branching out into Hong Kong where he passed away when my mum was only two years of age.
So my granduncle took over the business in Indonesia and made it bigger, and now my uncle is running the Singapore side of the business. My granduncle's youngest daughter is helping my uncle run the Singapore business too, and now my cousin (my uncle's eldest daughter) just joined the company as she is to be groomed as the successor.
Certain things are really priceless in life. Like a nice gathering with your extended family. Having an outing with the company of a friend or friends. Having time to yourself to do things you like. Spending quality time with people you care for and care about. All these mean so much more to me than just working my life away and being promoted and getting all the money in the world, and I will never trade these for anything else.
2 comments:
True, certain ARE priceless. How much wealth can buy relationships? I recently went for my relatives gathering and there is so much to talk and catch up.
There are your cousins who grew up with you. There are your aunties who are always looking out for you. Topics may change but you will always be the same young child they knew you at first.
Yup, very true indeed!
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