Bamboo Thoughts

While most Chinese buy some decorative bamboo to usher in the Chinese New Year my thoughts are of my father and our times in Brooke Drive when we had different kinds of bamboo in our garden. My grandfather actually grew many bamboo bushes to produce bamboo shoots in Sungei Merah. But my father was slightly more aesthetic in nature. His interest was more inclined towards landscaping.

But he had many uses of bamboo being the resourceful person he was.



This photo really reminds me of my father. He would trim his hedge on his own with his garden scissors. He was a tall man and therefore could cut the top off very evenly. He had such patience.



This kind of bamboo hedge is rare today because of security issues. We had this kind of hedge all around our house in Brooke Drive Sibu. Throughout the years we lived there our house was never broken into by thieves. I must say we had truly a zero crime rate then.


This was the kind of bamboo we had in front of our main door. Said to be able to ward of bad luck.




The bamboo leaves. We would pick the small undeveloped needle like leaves in the early morning. The dew was also collected and put into a small bowl. Those were the days when we did not know the word pollution. So the whole bowl of bamboo needles and dew drops were steamed with rock sugar for us children to cleanse our kidney and get rid of our "heat".