Papa’ and I

Hi everyone,

I love and respect my Papa’ ( father or dad ) a lot.  When I was a little boy and woke up in the middle of the night.  I saw my Papa’ at his desk using English to Chinese  dictionary to read his English book.  My Papa’ had completed only third grade.  My grandparents had eleven children and my Papa’ was the  fifth child.  My grandfather was a carpenter and he did not make much money to feed his family.  My Papa’ ran away from home when he was eleven years old, so that his brothers and sisters would have more to eat.  Maybe that is why my Papa’ sent me over here to have a better education.  I will have a good life later on.  He ran away from home to my grandfather’s ( my Mama’ s dad ) shipyard.  My grandfather had a kind heart, he took care of a lot of the runaway children.  He put them to work as a trainee to learn how to be a welder, carpenter, lathe operator, mechanic, etc.  He provided a dormitory for them to sleep and had an old cook to prepare meals for them.  They learned and earned some money.  My Papa’ was one of them.  He was the most hard working and aggressive boy.  He didn’t learn just one skill.  When he completed the training to be a mechanic,  he asked to go to another department to learn another skill.  All the children moved on to be promoted to be the master of the skill they had learned because they made more money.  My Papa’ wanted to stay on as a trainee to learn the other skills.  Many years went by, he finished all the training in every department.  My grandfather had been observing my Papa’ all along.  My grandfather knew that my Papa’ was a hard worker, intelligent, had a nice personality, and  cared for his family.  My grandfather promoted him to be the manager of the shipyard.  The English book that he read at night was about how to repair the commercial liner or ship.  He tried to keep himself up with the new tech.

One day when I was a little boy, Papa’ came home from work.  He saw me watching our new black and white television with rabbit ears.  He asked me if  I finished my homework? Yes sir, I told him.  Did you do all your chores around the house? Yes sir, I did.  You don’t have anything else to do?  No sir.  In that case, you follow me to the ship yard.  When we got to the ship yard, he told me to walk around the place.  I did as he told.  I got back to him.  He asked me what I would like to be a welder, a mechanic or whatever I like to work after school.  Well Papa’, you didn’t tell me that, please let me walk again one more round.  After I finished my observation in every department,  I decided to be a welder.  Papa’, I would like to learn how to be a welder, it looked interesting to put two pieces of metal to become one.  You will report to the welding foreman that you are going to start working there tomorrow as a trainee.  I tell you what.  It is not easy at all in the beginning.  I burned my eyes because my welding hood did not cover my eyes fast enough.  You have to have a good coordination of your neck and your hand.  Before you stroke the welding rod, you need to snap your head to bring your welding hood down.  It took me a few days to accomplish it, but that caused my eyes to burn and start watering.  It hurt  very bad, so don’t watch the welding without a welding hood.

I was the youngest ever at the shipyard.  There is one incident I  would like to share with you.  One morning the house phone rang at 2 a.m., Papa’ woke me up and told me to get dressed to go to work.  He told me that two ships had an accident by head on collision.  One of them was a Panamanian ship severely damaged.  I went with Papa’ on that ship.  The head of the ship had a big hole but only a small boy like me could go to it easier.  They put the big steel plate to seal the head of the ship with me inside to weld by myself.  Outside, they got three welders to weld.  It took 3 days and 2 nights to finish the job with no sleep.   Papa’ told all of his staff at the shipyard that if my son can perform this kind of job, you all can do it too.  Papa’ was very proud of me.

Well I better say goodbye for now.  I will tell you some more later next time.

Mana

Looking back

Hi everyone,

What would you do if you want to drink a glass of frozen margarita today?  It is a very simple thing to make it nowadays, but it was not when I grew up.  You have a blender to help you making it.  In the past, we had to buy a big rock of ice and then you shaved the ice by hand.  This is one example to show how difficult our life was.  Mama’ got up early in the morning to go to the open market.  Mama’ started fire with wooden sticks and newspaper to burn the charcoal on the stove. She put five cups of rice in the cooking pot.  She measured water with her index finger about one and one half inch above the rice.  She let the rice cook while she cut up the meat and vegetables on the hard and heavy cutting block.  When the water was boiling down to the same level with the rice,  she reduced the heat by taking some red hot charcoals out to another stove for stir fry cooking and also for boiling water.  She boiled water to make a big pot of Chinese tea and for washing clothes.  Mama’ washed our clothes by hand and hanged on the cloth lines.  I picked them up when I came home from my school.  Mama’ gave me three bahts (about 15 cents in American currency) for my daily allowance. This was my lunch and drink.  I walked two miles to my high school everyday.  The choice of public transportation at that times were SAM RAW ( human labor tricycles ), ROD RANG ( electric tram ), bus and taxi.  SAM RAW and ROD RANG had been banned in Bangkok.  SAM RAW had been replaced by TUK TUK ( motor tricycles ), because SAM RAW was too slow.  Bangkok was growing fast and modern.  I will get lost in Bangkok if I travel alone by myself.  Bangkok today has Free way, Sky train, Sub way and Sky Scrapers.  Back to my high school day, I had to wear the school uniform, white short sleeves shirt and blue knee high short.  On my left side of the shirt above my shirt packet is my first name and my high school identification number.  Both of them are hand embroidery stitches and my mama’ did them for me.  I got five white school shirts to wear to school, the same as my two brothers.  Mama’ did them all by hand.  The sewing machine operated by foot pedal,  the pedal spun the wheel, and the wheel got the belt to make the sewing machine moving for stitches.  Life in general consumed a lot of time in making things.  I forgot to tell you when mama’ and I prepared the meal in the kitchen.  Mama’ had to have a wet stone right beside her when she was cutting up the meat.  They didn’t have the knife sharpening, we used the wet stone to sharp the knife with.  Some of the Chinese dishes required ground meat, mama’ cut up meat in small pieces, then she beat them up with pestle and stone.  She beat it until the meat was fine and ground.  I write this post because I  realize how much my mama’ was giving such an unconditional love to her family.  We should be happy and cherish what we have now.  You don’t miss them until they are gone.

I appreciate the comments that I have received. Please share with me about your own life if you have grown up like me. Good-bye for now.

Mana