a place i called home
yesterday cycled to my old childhood home at blk 551. the holy infant jesus centre’s still there, though it looks cosier now. n dis statue of some nun is still there lolz, though i remembered dat she looked less dishevelled n less mouldy. otherwise, i think dat the whole complex is still one of the finest pieces of architecture in the area. its cosy, laid-back, n coupled wif all my memories of classes i had there, walking around the compound feels soothing n timeless. it just shows dat architects can be modern but yet still produce something dat exudes old-world charm. no one builds like dat these days.
playground’s still around though its been upgraded. no more sand and walls wif square coloured ceramic tiles to hid behind. badminton courts still there too. opposite, it seems econ minimart died. the photocopy cum photo-developing shop has disappeared, but gd old dah sing minimart survives looking n smelling the same.
i think the void deck seemed to haf shrunk. ok. tables and chairs where ah pecks sit to drink beer n play chess r still there. n i remember dat used to b wad i call mini lucky plaza in the mornings where maids will all sit around n talk about heaven earth n sky while waiting for the school buses to pick my primary schoolmates n me up. surprised to see the old hopscotch still there though. ah yes, n who can forget the ubiquitous “no soccer fine $100” signs pasted everywhere on the walls.
took the lift up to the 11th floor. walked the same corridor i did when i was a kid wif my mother holding my hand telling me we’re going to a new home. it seems neighbours have moved out also. first house on the left used to belong to old ahmad. he had plants dangling everywhere, which gave a very green n warm welcome to the corridor u passed everyday on ur way home. 4 units down, hai quan also moved out. remembered how i used to help his ah mah burn joss paper. didn’t noe its significance, but oh well, it looked fun! turning left n walking down the staircase to my old flat, i saw it looked different (obviously). door grilles have been replaced. there r a few amulets pasted above the door...n there’s a taoist censor hanging in front of it. i wonder who lives now behind those walls. hope they like the home they’re living in.
was also wondering if the leongs who lived facing us moved out. i used to talk nonsense n play games wif their kids thru our door grilles in the evening n 2 sets of parents had a hard time trying to get all of us to eat our dinner after dat.
altho a few pple haf moved out, n there were minor changes here n there, blk 551 had stayed the same way i remembered it to b. n i hope it stays dat way. it gives me a sense of rootness to an island dat always seem to tear down n rebuild stuff every couple years or so.
alvin ong dozed and watched the sawdust trampled night @ 4:36 PM
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