It felt rather surreal being asked by a man at Outram MRT Station if I had attended Bukit Panjang Primary School.
I had, and he remembered me from those days, more than 60 years ago.
Talking to him transported me into a world of memories.
I remember us boys dressed in frayed white shorts and shirts, and the girls in their crisp white tops with dark green pinafores. Everyone was pencil thin in my class except for the son of a coffeeshop owner.
Although he was big – and clumsy – he was always a part of our football sessions because he was the only one who had a proper football.
We played barefooted since our white canvas shoes had to be kept clean. Strangely, that didn’t apply to our shorts and shirts.
Hantam bola – Malay for “hitting with a ball” – was another popular game during recess as it only required one tennis ball for all of us to play.
Divided into two teams, we would pass the ball to team members so as to target a member of the opposing team. The person with the ball cannot run with it so there was some strategy involved in getting the thrower close enough to deliver a stinging shot.
Sometimes, we would pause our game just to wave at the passengers on the Malaysian train that ran beside the school.
Then, to everyone’s dismay, the school bell would signal the end of recess, and we would troop into the classroom with our sweat-drenched shirts plastered to our backs. One teacher was not impressed with this spectacle and declared that pupils would not be allowed in until their shirts were dry.
We continued playing football during recess after that day – but without our shirts, which did not reflect too well on the school’s image.
Then, there was tikam-tikam, a Malay phrase that means “random choice”. This was a lucky-draw game often found at provision and drink stalls until it was banned in 1961.
You pay five cents to pick a tab off a chart, and then see if you happened to be a winner. Prizes could be a 20-cent packet of raisins, biscuits, or a small plastic toy.
As my pocket money was a meagre 15 cents a day, five cents was a big sum to wager. That could pay for a glass of pineapple flavoured drink or a small plate of fried rice.
These days, five cents will buy you… zilch!
By Khush Randhawa
