Hubby is a WW2 aficionado, so he brought the whole family on a surprise trip to this little-known war museum last weekend - Memories at Old Ford Factory. This was the very same location that the British army surrendered to the Japanese forces, and it felt really significant to walk up the very same path that the British troops marched up in 1942.
I thought it was a really educational trip and was so thankful to Hubby who brought us here. We took this opportunity to highlight to the Bees about what happened in the Japanese occupation of Singapore, which was an extension of what they saw in the National Museum 2 months back.
Big Bee was fairly fascinated by some of the gory posters and I even caught her ruminating over some displays, reading them intently. Little Bee didn't know where she was or why she was doing there, and she spent the majority of time playing with another little girl whose parents were also busy reading the displays like us!
Big Bee concentrating on reading our war history
A nervous grin from Little Bee, who was staring at...
...none other but the fearsome Japanese Commander-in-Chief then, General Yamashita!
There was a beautiful garden outside the museum, showcasing real crops that Singaporeans ate during the occupation - sweet potato, pineapple, rice, etc. As we ambled past the make-shift rice patch with a cute scarecrow peering over it, Hubby suddenly pointed out to a black mass struggling in the water of the rice patch. On closer look, we discovered to our horror that it was a drowning bird in the water! Hubby went on to find an empty flower pot and scooped up the bird, giving it a new lease of life again. What a heroic gesture - and in front of his darling girls! The Bees were impressed for sure!
The bird, draped in algae, struggled up on its two feet to look at Hubby intently when it was rescued from the dank waters - as if to say thanks!
As we strolled down that historic path back to our car, we stopped to admire the dense forest of rolling hills around us, with the golden rays of the late afternoon sun beaming down on us and the quiescent whisper of the warm wind caressing our cheeks.
We imagined how the British must have felt all those years back as they surrendered. More importantly, we envisioned how embittered the Singaporeans - our foreparents - might have felt in the cruel hands of the Japanese. It makes me embrace peace so much more, for it certainly is a treasured gem, to be handled with absolute care in this beloved place we call home.
1 comment:
Nice and educational. But I'm the coward and often refuse to see war pictures. They certainly give me nightmares.
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