Wednesdays & Weekends are a series of posts based on my life with my parents, their lives and my conversations with them. In their later years I began to see them more regularly, taking them out for lunches and a day’s outing on Wednesdays and weekends. Those times became precious and filled with special memories.
Peter & Lily
Peter and Lily are my adorable elderly parents. Born and raised in Singapore and having lived through World War 2 they have many stories to tell. They migrated to Perth in the early 70s and have been here since.
My dad, Peter was a retired primary school teacher and my mum Lily, a home maker. I’m often told by friends that my dad was like a sage, quiet and wise, always happy and smiling and not perturbed by life’s stresses. My strong childhood memories of my dad are his idioms that he would bestow on me in our car drive home to and from school. Idioms like “To err is human to forgive is divine” and the all time classic that most of you would know “Good better best, never let it rest, till your good is better and your better is best“. He lived by the mantra of taking one day at a time and everything will be alright!
Whilst my dad would read bedtime stories and fairy tales to me, my mum would tell me Chinese fables from her childhood, where there was always a moral to the story she told. Often these stories would be peppered with Confucianism, Buddhist and Taoist ideologies with a values teaching. I can honestly say that my upbringing has given me grounding and balance in my adult life and for that I am grateful.
I am blessed that I live in the same state as them (unlike my much older siblings who had to move away for work). Being in the same state as them means that my daily life has always involved my parents including being able to celebrate many special occasions together. And as they age it’s not only my duty as a daughter to look after them as they cared for me growing up, but also to create memories and moments of happiness for them in their day to day life as they age.
They have always been there for me and now, I am here for them as they get older.
Here, I’ll share with you their stories, my food adventures with them, outings I take them on, amusing anecdotes of my life with my parents and the wisdom they share with me. Some stories will be short, some will be long. It’s my life with my parents and their life together that I share with you in my Wednesdays & Weekends blog posts. I hope you enjoy them.
