The KL Connection
Cousin CF called earlier this evening; it was his annual Chinese New Year phone call to mother, but as usual he spoke with me first since I answered the call, as I usually do. (Yes, this is the same cousin CF who got taken for a RM10/- ride by a KL taxi driver for what was a regular 10-minute walk. To read about it, click here.)
His call reminded me of a part of my childhood where a host of relatives from my mother’s side of the family in East Malaysia would stop by our house in KL on their way to and from overseas destinations. I remembered it as them needing to visit KL to get their student visas to countries such as England and the States, but when I mentioned it to my brother, he said some of them visited on their way back after having finished their studies. Which was true. But cousin CF was definitely one of those who stopped by on his way to the States; he had to visit the US Embassy for an interview to get his visa.
He’s not really my cousin but his mother’s family was very close to my maternal grandparents, with them taking to my mother as their little sister, so he ended up calling mum aunty, so he was a sort of cousin, altho not blood related. After he visited, one of his brothers visited enroute to New Zealand, while his two youngest brothers followed in his footsteps to the States, and came to stay with us when they came for their interviews to get their visas.
The others who visited on their way either to or from overseas destinations included cousins Joseph (back from NZ), Robert (can’t rememeber if it was to or from Wales) and Thomas (to NZ), all of them sons of my mother’s sister. Their sister Cecilia would come to study in KL in the early 70s. Her parents came to help her settle in, and that was when my mum and their mum met for the first time after almost 30 years, my mum having left Sandakan in Sabah at the end of WW2, but that’s probably subject for another post.
Cousin CF had done his first degree in Taiwan before going on to the States for postgrad studies. He went to one of the lesser known states, Wyoming, but it was exotic to me, especially the snow in the pictures he sent. It was from him that I learned that there was this place called Yellowstone Park.
He later met and married an Asian American girl, became an American citizen, and settled in the little state of New Jersey. I stayed with them during my tour of the States after dropping out of grad school in 1990. Their house was base for my East Coast part of the tour, where I left most of my luggage while I travelled up and down the coast, north to Boston and New York City, and south to Washington, DC and Orlando, Florida.
As with previous years’ calls, I knew he wanted to speak with mother but it was not possible this year as we’d just sent her back to GT Heritage after having had her with us for the day. I gave him an update about her, and I think he sounded sad that we had to put her in a nursing home.
I asked about his family, especially whether he’s now a grandpa. He replied yes, that his daughter has a son who’s now 10 months old, and named Aidan. He added that the name is Irish, which is funny, since I think both parents are Chinese (or Asian American). Maybe one or both parents are fans of the actor Aidan Quinn.
There’s going to be a follow-up to his call this year, as I’d promised to call him tomorrow morning when mum is back here to spend another day with us. I hope she remembers him when they speak on the phone.
