The Quirky Kampung Tales Of Ijan And His Early School Years

By Saiful Lizan Muhamed

The book is generally written in a humorous tone but there are poignant moments in the book where the narration takes on a more serious or sad tone where they are needed. The book is about the growing up years of a boy called Ijan who grew up in a fast-developing Singapore in the 1970s and 1980s in two different villages or “kampung” as they are called in Singapore. Although the concept or notion of a “kampung” is now gone in the developed city of Singapore, the book invites the readers to take a journey back to a historical Singapore as a backdrop. Ingrained in the ways of the village, Ijan the “kampung” boy had also attended schools which were very structured and the schools were where his parents were teachers. As a “kampung” boy, Ijan was accustomed to his roaming ways and as a teacher’s son, he was expected to behave. This was further compounded where it seemed Ijan’s DNA had been “hardwired” with the characteristics of what was known in the village as a “pusar dua” anomaly. He was born with two hair whirls at the back of his head! This led to a somewhat disorderly hair disposition for Ijan but more significantly, the villagers believed this anomaly brought with it certain traits to the “afflicted” boy. It was believed that a “pusar dua” boy would be a maverick of sorts, hyperactive and stubborn to say the least. He was also believed to be blessed with a very endearing character, especially to animals. The interesting contrast in environment, character and expectations are the themes that carry the narration in this book with Ijan as the protagonist.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Release date: Nov 30, 2022
• ISBN: 9781398454552

Saiful Lizan Muhamed

The author is a man in his 50s and is currently residing in Malaysia. His growing up years up to the age of 22 years old were spent in Singapore. Although settled down in Malaysia for some time already, he still has fond memories of growing up in his village or in Malay ‘Kampung’ and his early schoolyears in Singapore. Therefore, in this book he shares his experiences with the readers. It is no coincidence that Ijan is the nickname of the author accorded to him in his village-roaming days and for all intents and purposes, Ijan was the author in his younger ‘Kampung’ days and early schoolyears. Ijan was also often times called ‘pusar dua’, which means ‘two hair whirls’ in Malay by his uncles due to the physical attributes attached to his hair. Simply explained, where most people would have one hair whirl towards the back of the head leading to an orderly hair disposition, Ijan was born with two hair whirls next to each other. This contributed to a somewhat disorderly hair disposition for Ijan but this never bothered him. In the village, there were certain personal characteristic attributes which were believed to be attached to a person with ‘pusar dua’, some of which was that the ‘pusar dua’ kid would be a bit (An understatement for Ijan) hyperactive and stubborn but will have a good bond with animals. Also, the author’s late parents, in Malay called ‘Mak’ (Mother) and ‘Abah’ (Father) were teachers at the schools where Ijan attended. ‘Mak’ taught the Malay language at Stoffen’s Primary School (Fictitious school name) and ‘Abah’ also taught Malay language and Art at Potts Secondary School (Another fictitious school name). Although the names are fictitious in this book to protect the school’s confidentiality, the stories narrated are based on true events. So, yes, Ijan was not only a teacher’s son but two teachers’ son and born out of two ‘Kampungs’! While it is often said in these parts that it would take a whole village to raise a child, in Ijan’s case, it took two. Also, as a generally accepted norm, a teacher’s son is usually perceived to be very studious and very well behaved, especially at the schools where the parents were teaching. However, with Ijan and his ‘pusar dua’ traits hardwired in his DNA with his maverick tendencies, this norm would be challenged and sometimes to the limits. The author hopes that the readers enjoy every narration in this book as much as he has had tremendous pleasure telling them, touching on the numerous light-hearted, humorous and sombre moments he had growing up in his ‘Kampung’ and attending school in Singapore in its early years. As the author attempts a true-life depiction in the narration of the events in his life in the ‘Kampung’ with his late grannies, late parents, uncles, aunties, cousins, and friends, he would like to extend his sincere apologies if in the course of any recollection of the events, any characters had been inadvertently slighted or excluded. The narration in this book is done with the best intention and to the best of the author’s recollection. The author would also like to take this opportunity to record his many thanks to his immediate family; his wife Zubaidah and his children Renee, Suhail and Syuaib who have all been inspirational to the author throughout. Special thanks also to the author’s extended family members who have been very supportive of the author in one way or another through the years. The author would also like to record a special tribute to the memory of his late grandparents, late parents, together with late uncles and aunties who have since passed on. All these memories and experiences have been inspirational to the author in the writing of this book while also making the author’s days in his ‘Kampung’ and early school years very exciting contributing immeasurably to the author’s often varied and colourful life.

Book preview

1. Preface

Ijan has three children, his daughter Renee the eldest (26 years old), his son Suhail the second child (22 years old) and his youngest son, Syuaib (10 years old). The youngest, Syuaib, would often find himself tagging along Ijan. This would probably be due to the big age difference between him and his siblings.

It would therefore be quite common for Syuaib to engage in endless conversations with his dad, Ijan. On his part, Ijan would be happy to oblige and engage Syuaib in these conversations as Syuaib is quite an inquisitive conversationalist.

At the age of ten years old, naturally, also Syuaib had many questions not only about his surroundings but also about the surroundings that his father, Ijan, had grown up in. Syuaib is also a witty boy and would burst into his contagious balls of laughter at the slightest provocation. Ijan would be called ‘Ayah’ by his children, an endearing term meaning father in Malay.

Over one particular lazy weekend, Father and son had just sat down to relax after a late lunch when Syuaib struck a conversation with Ijan popping a question out of nowhere,

What was it like for you growing up when you were my age, Ayah? Syuaib asked.

"Well…it may surprise you to know that when I was your age, I lived in a ‘kampung’ in Singapore," Ijan replied, rather as a matter of fact.

"What? In a ‘kampung’? No way! The times we visited Singapore, I didn’t see any ‘kampungs’. More like a concrete jungle, Ayah," Syuaib interjected wittingly in a flash.

"Yes, now no more ‘kampungs’ in Singapore but at the time when I was growing up at your age, there were still many villages, you know! Things were very different then," Ijan replied in reflection.

Ooo…how different, Ayah? Tell me about it, pestered a rather excited Syuaib.

"OK, I’ll tell you all about my days at my ‘kampung’, and…Oh! Would you also like to hear about my early school years when I was about your age in Singapore?" Ijan answered obligingly while throwing another question back.

Ooo…tell, tell me, Ayah. That would be fun! added Syuaib, rather excited.

Casting a long look, Ijan then called out softly to Syuaib,

"Now, come here sit next to me and make yourself comfortable. It’s going to be quite a long story about a ‘kampung’ boy called Ijan…"

2. Kampung Siglap

For the first five years of his life, Ijan lived in a village or ‘kampung’ in Malay, where his father (‘Abah’) grew up at Jalan Sempadan, Siglap, Singapore at a village called ‘Kampung Siglap’. This village was on the eastern coast of Singapore and it faced the beach towards the end of it. This was the time before the east coast sea off Singapore was reclaimed for residential projects.

Also, being a ‘kampung’ by the sea, the ground all the village area was covered with beach sand. Just walking along the village would give Ijan a sinking feeling because of the fine beach sand grains but on a hot day, it would keep his feet warm as he trodded happily along the village in his rubber slippers.

The houses in the ‘kampung’ were sort of scattered all over the vast village area. There were no roads in the village and there were no fences, hedges or any clear boundaries between one house to the next. To add to the village-by-the-sea aura, there were coconut trees springing up all over.

The village was also bordered by a canal at the side and Ijan’s family house at ‘Kampung Siglap’ was closer to the canal than the beach area. The family house where Ijan stayed was long and rectangular in shape. As the ‘kampung’ had no roads, it would be difficult to identify which end of Ijan’s family house was the front and which end was the back. This would sometimes confuse guests.

The family house was constructed from hardwood and it sat on wooden stilts. So, it was possible for anybody or anything for that matter to walk under the wooden floors of the house which were then covered with a rubber mat. In the washing area, there was a well for which the water was used mainly for bathing. Scooping the water out from the well with a pail tied to a rope would require some skill though.

At the side of the house, just a few metres away was a small graveyard! This was where some unknown fatal casualties of World War II had been buried and the tombstones were clearly visible! With the graveyard so close and the house sitting on stilts, on some nights especially after listening to some ‘kampung’ ghost folklore, Ijan would be kept awake just thinking about what could be lurking underneath the floor of the house. The cats and chickens creating all sorts of sounds while fighting and clawing through the rustling dry leaves amidst the loose sand under the house wasn’t helping Ijan curtail his wild imagination either.

Being in a low-lying area, ‘Kampung Siglap’ was quite prone to floods on days of heavy rains. As Ijan’s family house was near the canal, it would suffer the effects if the canal would overflow when it was inundated with a heavy flow of rainwater. The canal itself, though, was a source of fun for the village boys who would plunge into it from the sides and also from the bridge.

As Ijan was still little then, he was disallowed to partake in any activities at the canal with the other bigger boys and rightfully so, since the water was deep and therefore dangerous. This made Ijan envious of those boys frolicking in the canal water. To compensate for missing out on this fun, Ijan would on days when it rained heavy, sneak out with a few likeminded little friends and have a good bath in the rain. He and his friends would go house-to-house and stand under the roof funnels to experience a small waterfall effect as the rain thudded down on their heads and all over their bodies.

Oooh! …oooh! Brrrr! … Brrr! … Brrr! Ijan would blurt out enjoying his bath in the rain while shivering all over.

Ijan would be found out of course. There was no way he could sneak back home all drenched and shivering but he considered it all worthwhile. Mak would be the first to be crossed with him. With her hands on her hips and shaking her head, she would ask in Malay,

Ijan! Kenapa suka mandi hujan?

In English it means,

Ijan! Why do you like to bathe in the rain?

A few of Ijan’s cousins giggled away and commented,

Ijan suka mandi Hujan!

It meant the same in English but his cousins were highlighting the rhyming of ‘Ijan’ and ‘Hujan’ (‘Rain’ in English). It became a source of joke in the household that Ijan would be drawn to the rain because of his name.

The occupants of the family house at Kampung Siglap were Ijan’s family, Ijan grandmother called ‘Tok’ (Known as ‘Tok Teh’ to the village folks), the family of Ijan’s uncle, Pak Lang, the husband-and-wife team of Pak Latip and Mak Nah and Pak Encu, Ijan’s bachelor uncle. As Pak Latip and Mak Nah had no children of their own, Ijan became very close to them, especially so Pak Latip who had asked Ijan to call him ‘Uncle’. Pak Latip was Abah’s brother-in-law while his wife, Mak Nah was Abah’s sister.

As Ijan’s parents and the other adults would be away at work during workdays, there was a caretaker named Kak Midah who would come by daily to help tend to Ijan when Kakak (Ijan’s elder sister by about five years) would go to school. Although Tok and Mak Nah would be at home, they would be quite busy with a business venture that they had undertaken together operating from home and this was the making and selling of two Malay ‘kuehs’ known as ‘bahulu’ and ‘epok-epok’. ‘Kueh’ in English refers to Malay cakes, cookies or desserts. ‘Bahulu’ as a Malay ‘kueh’ had its ingredients consisting of wheat flour, sugar, eggs and baking powder. Each of these ‘kueh bahulu’ would look quite like a muffin or a cupcake, and they would be so fluffed up proudly glowing in rich yellow and brown crust.

The ‘epok-epok’ was not to be outdone by the ‘bahulu’. In its essence, ‘epok-epok’ was basically curry puffs with a slight modification whereby it would come in three variants differentiated by the fillings consisting of either curried potatoes, sardines or bean sprouts eaten with chilli paste. The fillings would then be rolled up into a semi-circle in the middle of the flour paste. Why did the Malays have to name it twice by the same name, you might ask? Why can’t it be called just ‘epok’ instead of ‘epok-epok’? Wasn’t it a waste of breath? This was a bit of a mystery for Ijan!

Well, Ijan dwelled on this issue for a short and just when he thought of calling Sherlock Holmes to help him solve the mystery in the naming of ‘epok-epok’, he sank his teeth into some samples from these three variants of the ‘epok-epok’. The answer then became crystal clear for Ijan; they were so yummy, you simply had to call out their name twice. Just ‘epok’ would not do! It had to be ‘epok-epok’! The mystery was solved…no need to call Sherlock Holmes!

When these ‘bahulu’ and ‘epok-epok’ were ready, Tok and Mak Nah would put them neatly in baskets and would pay some boys from the village to go around the ‘kampung’ selling them. As they prowled the village, these boys would be calling out these ‘kueh’ names in rhythmic tunes to catch the attention of potential customers.

On some school holidays, Kakak and Kak Nen (An elder girl cousin and Kakak’s bosom buddy) would help Tok and Mak Nah with their ‘bahulu’ and ‘epok-epok’. During these school holidays, Kak Nen would stay over at Tok’s place with her siblings Abang Aim, Abang Asin and Abang Ajiz.

Just us Kakak would be close to Kak Nen, Ijan would find the same closeness with ‘Uncle’. Every night Ijan would sneak into Mak Nah’s and ‘Uncle’s’ bedroom to sleep under the safe haven of ‘Uncle’s’ armpit. Abah would then carry Ijan to his room after he had fallen asleep with ‘Uncle’ only for Ijan to wake up in the mornings with some protestations as to why he was not allowed to continue sleeping with ‘Uncle’. These events continue almost every night and morning without fail.

Whenever Ijan would get some scolding from his parents especially on occasions when he sneaked out to bathe in the rain, ‘Uncle’ was quick to intervene and ‘rescue’ him. He would simply say in Malay to Ijan’s parents to placate the reprimanding Ijan,

Sudahlah, sudahlah tu!

In English it means,

Enough! That’s Enough!

With that, ‘Uncle’ would quickly bundle Ijan up, put him on his bicycle and off they went to the nearby grocery shop for him to treat Ijan. It was indeed an endearing relationship between the two. Having no children of his own, the ever kind soul in ‘Uncle’ was caring and protective towards Ijan and his other cousins.

Now, a little about Abah. He was a jovial character but when it came to the consumption of the right nutritional food and drinks for kids, he was always firm. To this end, to supplement the nutritional needs of Kakak and Ijan, Abah would buy fresh milk…by the cartons.! Horlicks was also a daily supplement for Ijan. Together, Kakak and Ijan would struggle sometimes to keep up with Abah’s nutritional regime which would include cereals and half-boiled eggs too.

‘Uncle’ on his part would just hover around the breakfast table where Kakak and Ijan were to have their nutritional fix by Abah. These two siblings would concede the need for this healthy food but just seeing cartons of fresh milk laying in the kitchen, they would be mentally defeated.

When ‘Uncle’ thought that the two of them couldn’t swallow it anymore, what more with their contorted faces, this kind soul would intervene again in Malay.

Sudahlahtu Mat (Referring to Abah’s nickname) …Sudahlah!

In English, again, simply it meant,

Enough, Mat (Abah’s nickname) …That’s enough!

With ‘Uncle’ hovering about, intervening and interceding on behalf of Kakak and Ijan, Abah would give some leeway to the two siblings. It seemed everybody had a soft spot for ‘Uncle’. There’s a Malay saying that would best describe ‘Uncle’,

Dia pijak semut pun tak mati!

In English it means,

He is so gentle and kind-hearted, even if he steps on ants, they would not die.

Now, something must be said about the matriarch of Abah’s family, Ijan’s grandmother called Tok. With her fair complexion, grey hair, a little hump at her back and the demure manner in which she trod away, she could have passed off as a frail old lady although she was anything but that. Instead, she was a feisty, spritely lady with a lot of fire in her belly!

In line with her persona, Tok was also a wrestling fan! And she followed the wrestling matches on TV religiously. Although the TV area had no furniture with only the wooden floor covered with a rubber mat, it was a livelier area than the living room which was fully furnished. The house occupants would just sit or lie down on the floor of the TV area as they chatted along to enjoy their TV programmes which were still in black and white only back then.

During those times, not all houses in the village had the privilege of having TVs. Realising this, it was quite common for the house occupants to invite some of the ‘kampung’ folks over, especially those who didn’t have TVs in their homes so that they can enjoy some TV programmes together. So, there was actually a lot of merry-making at the furniture-less TV area where everybody felt comfortable, hosts and guests alike.

Also, as Tok’s wrestling TV programmes would come on a bit late at 10 pm on some nights, she would stay up late specially to watch her wrestling matches. On other nights, she would turn in quite early by about 9 pm. The wrestling programmes aired on TV those days were not like the WWE Smackdown that we have these days which tended to contain more talk than action. The ones which Tok watched were actual wrestling matches with a lot of thrills, spills and action. Tok would quietly take her spot in the TV area and as the wrestling match proceeded, she would quip in with some comments here and there. Ijan would join Tok when she watched her wrestling matches as he enjoyed the excitement of wrestling matches as much as he enjoyed watching Tok’s reactions during the matches.

On occasions when Tok was relaxing, she would revert to her demure self and engage in her favourite traditional past-time, chewing of ‘sireh’. This actually involved the chewing of betel leaves with other ingredients which included areca nuts, cloves, tobacco and chalk. The juice was extracted during the chewing process and the compost from the chewing would be thrown away. All these ingredients would be contained in a small wooden box or box-like brass tray called ‘tepak sireh’ and Tok would have hers ready and fully stocked at any one time. These days one would only see ‘tepak sireh’ at Malay wedding ceremonies.

On one particular occasion, Tok had already turned in for the night as there were no wrestling matches slotted on TV that night. Abah was sitting on the floor watching a TV programme when Kakak and Mat Shah, a cousin of about the same age as Kakak who would be her playmate too besides Kak Nen, were scurrying around in the TV area. While watching his TV programme, suddenly, Abah hissed out loud while gesturing a little frantically to Kakak and Mat Shah,

Quiet! Shhh! Can you hear it? There’s a strange sound coming from under the house!

This stopped Kakak and Mat Shah in their tracks, both fully aware of the ghost folklore surrounding the ‘kampung’. The possible question on their minds was what could be lurking under them below the wooden floor they were stepping on? While everyone in the TV area was on standstill, Abah instructed the two further,

Quick, both of you! Turn off the TV and each of you put one ear on the floor and tell me if you can hear anything!

Now somewhat stunned, Kakak and Mat Shah darted around the TV area following Abah’s instructions as to where the strange sound could be heard. Abah then pointed out to a spot a bit further from where he was seated. The two then each put their ears to the wooden floor and facing Abah, they gestured that they could not hear anything.

Abah, on his end, signalled to them to wait. Then out of nowhere, a loud sound could be heard.

PROOOT!!!

Abah had farted onto the wooden floor. The sound must have reverberated and been amplified a few times louder for Kakak and Mat Shah as they had their ears on the wooden floor. Abah must have gotten the idea from the early experiments of Alexander Graham Bell when the scientist tested sound to travel through matter on course towards inventing the telephone. All the same, Ijan was thoroughly convinced that no scientist would have carried out a sound travel experiment quite in the same manner as Abah had done. To Abah’s credit though, his farts may be loud but they were odourless and therefore, quite harmless. The looks on Kakak and Mat Shah were priceless and as they realised the prank by Abah, they immediately broke into balls of laughter.

Almost immediately also, the whole TV area ruptured into laughter with the kids and adults alike literally ROTFL (Rolling on the Floor Laughing).

KAH! KAH! KAH! KAH! KAH!

It took some time for the laughter to pipe down after that. Ijan