In the 70s, it was a double storey house with wooden wall. The main door opened to a cemented corridor in front, beyond which was an open space big enough for us to play badminton / high jump in those days. As the house was west facing, a tree was planted at the left and right front corner of the open yard respectively. Apart from shading the house, it acted as an indirect landmark separating our front yard from the unpaved main road (which was plied by cars, motorbikes and bicycles).
In those days, we did not have the luxury of flushing toilet. The old toilet was located about 10 yards away from the house in the backyard, and mind you there was no covered walkway then. We had to brave the rain when it rained to reach the toilet. It would be pitch dark at night; a torch light or candle light would be a necessity to brighten up the place. The night soil carrier would clear the human wastes on regular basis.
The old house was built in a low lying area and flood-prone. The water level had reached to the level a few inches above ankles on several occasions. In those years, the children would be overjoyed; these were the rare occasions we could play with water without being reprimanded. However, it had also caused many inconveniences - one of them coincided with Chinese New Year celebration. I had the misfortune of coming down with measles infection in one of the floods ... and was forbidden to touch or play with water then... how miserable!
To circumvent the flood, the ground level was gradually elevated, starting from the kitchen, then the main hall, and eventually the front yard. With each step of elevation of the ground level (without altering the height of the roof/ceiling), our main hall became more "cramped" or literally shorter. Fortunately, we managed to avert floods for quite a few years since.
The kitchen and bathroom had also undergone tremendous changes. A brick stove used to occupy a big space in the kitchen - we used charcoals to start fire and cook in those days. Gradually, this was knocked down and gave way to gas stove. The bathroom used to have a big sink which collects water for bathing purpose. We as kids might surreptitiously dip ourselves inside the pool of water in the sink, fantasizing ourselves playing in the swimming pool. And of course, we had been scolded for contaminating the water time and again... After renovation, the big sink had been knocked down, and replaced by a small tub instead.
Somewhere in the mid 90s, the trees in the two corners of our house were removed, and a concrete fence with automated door was build to give added security (my mother was robbed by a thief in the early morning when doing some chores in the backyard once).
And this is how my old house looks like now:
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| The external fence |
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| We used to play badminton in this open front yard... |
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| My late father's bike |
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| the automated gate |
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| Parking space at beside our house |
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| The paved road in front of our house |
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| The main hall of our house |
In the early 60s-70s, the old house was occupied by three families - my paternal 3rd uncle and his family (with 6 children), my paternal 5th uncle and his family (3 children), and my father and his family (5 children). In those days, my paternal grandmother was still around; and the house was dedicated as the "common property" of all the siblings. We did not own the land initially, but rented the plot of land from another person. You could imagine the chaos and complexity of communal family life in the household in those days.
Needless to say, with three families staying together, there were bound to be some squabbles. Along the way, the three families started to part ways. My 3rd uncle eventually moved out to a new place in the same town, while 2/5 of the plot of land occupied by our old house was carved out to my 5th uncle (who went on to build a brand new house on it).
My father eventually bought over the plot of land from the landowner in the 80s when it was open for tender. Even though my father was the one who foot the bill, the title deed of the land belonged to both my father and my 5th uncle. The reason was simple - it was and would always remain a "common" property for my father and his siblings. And I was told that my father had to pay my 2nd uncle certain amount of money so that they would not lay claim to the house.
My father has since passed on. My mother now shares the deed with my paternal 5th uncle. It remains to be seen what will happen in the future...
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