One week ago,while I was studying my ass of history,mummie told said she had a bad news.

He left.

The one in my previous post.

Immediately,i lost my mood to study. It took me so long to actually digest the fact that he's gone. Millions of thoughts came rushing in my mind. My Ah Thoir (mummy's sister's husband) .is.gone.forever. He was a great man.

Everyone has been telling me different reason why he left and i dont know which one to believe. Apparently,he fell from his bike on his way home from the hospital and got into a coma. When the doctors checked,they said he was suffering from a 4th stage lung cancer too! Relay For Life this year will be much more meaningful.He woke up from his coma a few days after and we all thought he was fine already. So we all took for granted and only made plans to visit him this coming jun holidays. A week after he woke up or so,i have got no freaking idea how what where who where when, he passed away peacefully. On 20th May 2010 @ 7.10 pm.

No doubt my family visits my aunty and her family almost every time we go back Penang but we seldom speak. You know the old people language where the kids never understood? Yea,that was it.He speaks teow chew and i suck in it. So i'll just sit there and play with the kids.

According to mummie,he was a good husband,father,son,brother,son-in-law,brother-in-law etc. Remember those days where no one was well off enough to get a car to go around? Well,he was a taxi driver and he was willing to do every single thing my grandpa used to ask him to do. Mummie's posting to Kelantan and KL for work,he was the one that sent mummie willingly without accepting a single cent. Same goes to a few of my cousins.He lived a hard life and I'm glad its time for him to rest and be with God :)

He never attended school and never knew how to read and write. He learnt everything by himself as he grow up. Once he even taught my lil second cousin how to count in english!

He went " one two three..........ten eleven twelve thirteen fourteen fifteen,milo tin,gu leng tin (milk powder tin),gah liau eh tin! (all kinds of tin!) " :)

*If you're superstitious or anything. you can stop reading now. :)

This was the first thing i saw when i reached the house.

Its a typical Buddhist funeral. Honestly,this is my first time attending a typical Buddhist funeral and also a person that's very close to me's funeral.

The portrait of him surrounded by bouquet of flowers broke my heart. I've never felt so helpless and depressed before.It got worst when i stepped in the house and take a look at him lying in the coffin. I didnt know what to do. I couldn't believe my eyes. I was speechless until mummy told me to call him. I barely could even call or say the word "Ah Thoir". I could see that he was resting in peace. All his problems are gone. All the pain he had gone through. Aunty came rushing in crying out loud when she saw mummie. I tried my best to hold my tears back. Didnt wanna make the situation worst. I just couldnt take it and i went away.

Grabbed some food to eat and drinks. Yes,they provide food and drink 24/7. Met up with quite a number of my family members. All the lil cousins are all grown up already!

Like this one! He told me to not take a picture because he wasnt ready.

okay,now he's ready :)

He's a chinese mix iban with big eyes and rabbits teeth. MAD CUTE!

Didn't really take much photo on the first day because i was afraid that there are some superstitious stuff. You know typical chinese thingy,very complicated.

The gambling spot paling laku i tell you! All the uncle uncles aunty aunties all will crowd around and gamble.So many people until they will stand on chair! Yea,its a tradition to gamble or to play mahjong in a funeral. Its to make the atmosphere happier or something like that i dont know!

 

Got more cards i tell you!

Then at one point,everyone just kept everything aside and the crowd cleared. (you know like in movies but without the running part,this one like slow motion) .The police were coming apparently. I must say the police damn babi TL wan lorh. Walked in arrogantly and went like "mana tuan rumah?!" while smoking wtf. He said they received 8 complains about people gambling here. I mean like wtf la. Its a funeral,not a wedding! Respect la hor! Plus the neighbours were all at the funeral. What cock.

Then my cousin sister wanted to see his ID card and he went like 

"tengok saja! tak boleh pegang!"

*snatches it back*

double wtf can?

Then he asked "kenapa ada ini card?"

smartly enough my cousin sister went " bapak saya suka judi. saya mau bakar untuk dia nanti la. tak boleh kah?"

Giving that tl face he went away.

We die die dont wanna give him rasuah la obviously. Think what.

The next day,visited granny! :)

Pig can pose while ah ma's complaining about something. heehehe.

Got bored. Went and selongkar ah ma's stuff! hehe,the best grandchildren ever! :) :)

Ah ma has got really nice stuff. Like her old old clutches that she doesn't use which is back in fashion now!

LOOK WHAT I FOUND! :D :D

Peter Chao's shades! Original,not from Thailand! (inside joke)

Now you know where i got it from? Cant blame me:)

I got it from my moama. :)

Freaking chio! As usual la,me and sister bao everything back ;p

DAMN NICE HORRR! :)

I think my grandmother was a fashionista last time :O

Got home,prepared for the funeral after that.

This thing damn cool larh! I dont know what you call it. Its like the thingy you see in lrt station wan.

The words will keep moving.

All mummie's siblings came back for the funeral from all over. It was my first time seeing all of them together. :)


Lousy photo quality.Its a funeral. You dont expect me to have a photoshoot.

Mummie putting on a piece of black cloth on my fifth uncle's left arm. and the younger generations like me,

Gets blue!

The one in green in granny's eldest granddaugther and i'm the youngest granddaughter! :) Clockwise from left,mummie,mummie's fifth brother,mummie's second sister,mummie's eldest sister with her granddaughter. Yeah,mumie got 10siblings including herself. Big big family:) Started the prayers around eight thirty for four solid hours!

Its my first time experiencing all these and i know nuts about it! They were all speaking teow chew and i barely understood what they were saying. or was it hokkien? pardon me. We had to sit down and listen to the monk pray and there were some people with really heavy make up and costume.

This guy freaked me out. A LOT.

I dont understand what was it but i know there was this one scene where another guy,dressed differently (without that much of a make up laa) came out. He was the tabib or something,that lady in red,brought us to see him so to heal my ah thoir.

We had to stand in a line,where the ones with black cloth will stand in front and the ones with blue stand behind them. We will take turns to pluck a leaf from a tree and put into a boiling pot. Apparently its like we pluck the herbs and boil it for ah thoir or something like that.

oh,not to mention,joss'sticksssssssssss. Every time they start praying we have to hold it. Until my fingers all red already! I used to like the smell of it.

Walked in a line in the house,around the coffin,walk back out for more then 20 times! Every time i walk pass the coffin,i will call "ah thoir" hoping he knows that i'm here and wake up from his sleep.

Then they built a small lil bridge for the next prayers. Every prayers has its own meaning. Repeat the whole walking around the house and kneeling thingy.


We were given packets of red envelope with a few 10cents coins in it. This lil bridge here is apparently a bridge to another world. Every time i cross it,i have to say "ah thoir guo ciao" Meaning, Ah Thoir,cross the bridge then throw a 10 cent coin in a bucket at the side.Girls with period are not allowed to cross the bridge.@@


And we cannot let the line break. Dont ask me why.

After the prayers,its time for us to burn for the dead. We carried all the paper house,car,tv,dvd player,Teresa Teng cd (ah thoir ah,you're gonna meet her there what.why need her cd?) and a whole lot of paper money to the road. It must be a cross junction road and it must not face an Indian God statue or something or else you must break a coconut.Something like that. I must say i learn a lot of things.

This thingy cost freaking 1.7k lorh i tell you!

Give birth not cheap,die also not very cheap lorh!

Pai pai again. Then we had to form a circle. The bigger the circle the better! Then walk around the house as it burns!

 
Crazily hot! Then the monk said we could stand aside already. Managed to capture a picture before we had to go return back.

So many pantang larang. Once we walk back,we cant turn our heads to look back at the fire,just have to keep walking until we reach the house. Must use back door summor! Enter from back door,must wash hands and face. Then pai pai again. And everyone had to grab a lil of food to eat on the table.

It was already around one that time and ...


GAMBLING TABLE STILL GOT SO MANY PEOPLE!

They gamble whole night wan leah! Minunum ten bucks. They even played until 10k per round!

My adorable cousin. :) He couldnt sleep so he took his pillow and slept next to the coffin,on the floor. He said he wanna accompanie his grandfather. :)

A basket filled with sweets in a rapper.

I took it random to eat and immediately i went "EHHH. LOOOOOOOK! NUMBER!" then everyone started picking out a packet then go buy 4D. LOLOL.

I tell you ah,all the aunties aunties in the funeral ah,like attending meet-chai-shen-ye (God of wealth) session like that. Took the number of the paper car,number of the bike my ah thoir fell from,number of the coffin car. All the number they see larh! Hoping to strike 4D.

Any idea what's those flowery cloth hanging behind for? Looks pretty much blankets.

The next day, chu bing day.

Look at that lil poser;)

Fat fat round round fair fair. Look like lil monk.

Eh,he knows how to camwhore! Never once he will look away when we're taking pictures.


He allows anyone to carry him too! Had breakfast and then started the prayers again.


They had people to play music and stuff. They even played Teresa Teng's song!

PORK! PORK PORK!

The last respect. Take turns to pai pai according to the ranking.

Once we're done.

ITS PORK TIME! \m/

It taste soooooooo good. No joke. I got to admit,even the food they cook in the funeral are much nicer than the food in KL. =.=

One whole pig cost like 800 bucks. Damn,good stuff. :)

After eating,no one's allowed to enter the house and a packet of meat was hung on the gate.

Then we sent ah thoir off to the junction with the brass playing. Super sad moment. ):


Could see all the neighbours peeping through their windows from their house.



See what i mean?

Towards the end of the junction,we all turned around, kneeled down and bow to thank those that followed the whole funeral.


Took the rented bus to the cemetery.

In the bus,my uncle told me that the last joke my ah thoir said before he left in teow chew was

"When we were young,we raise up the kids and grandchildren. When we grow old, we raise up the doctor. When we die,we raise up the termite hill"

Such a jovial person :)



We cant even stop for the traffic lights.

There will be someone else to stop the traffic for us. Just have to keep driving and driving. and there will be someone throwing out gold papers out the window along the way.

The part i was not looking forward to.

Cremation.



They put the coffin on this moving trolley like thingy.


Pai pai again and then the coffin moves in the room actomatically.

Everyone started screaming and crying loudly as the door closes. And I,couldn't control myself,i cried too ): It all happened in ten minutes and we head back again.


Told to wash our hands and face with a bucket of water filled with flowers.

Got back,washed out hands and face with the water again!

Pai pai once more and this time we had to do something else.

Place the joss'stick on the pot,eat one tong yuen,take one pink envolope and one red string. Tong yuen represents that you will have food through out your whole life,pink envolope represents that you'll have property and red string bringing you good luck!

Everyone has to take back a lil of the food they used for prayers. It means good luck or something. Traditions. I dont see how does that make sense.

Tong yuen! *loves* :)

Everyone has to change their outfit after that. Any colour but black or red.


Super cute second cousins staring at a standing red bean on the floor :) Wu liao people.

Rest in peace Ah Thoir. You will always be remembered. :)

This is life.

Do whatever you want because life is too short. Appreciate. :)