"Kampung" Lifestyle

"Kampung" means village....and "kampung" lifestyle means a village lifestyle.I've watched it on television,read about it in newspapers and heard stories from people.....about how wonderful it is to stay in a village.Just the other day......did I actually get to feel how it would have been to stay in a village.My father was born in a village....and his village friends had planned a football tournament for the people who had lived in his village last time.Memories flooded his mind and he was telling me his stories about his wonderful childhood.

He used to wake up early in the morning to buy the things to cook for the day for his mother.Then,he would take out the book to read.Well,he doesn't really read....he just flips the pages.His mother.....or my grandmother was not really educated.So,my father would say he finished studying a few minutes after opening the book.....and would run out for football with his friends.He would return for lunch,and then run out again to spend time with his friends.

Football was life for many in his village.They were crazy about football.Some were exceptionally good while some just never seemed to improve.There were two main football teams in his village.These teams frequently organised matches with other clubs and associations.Leave out the team,and there were still many others who played football for fun.According to him,there were two fields to accommodate them in the village as there were just too many to play in one field.

After football,they would go the nearest "lombong",or an exhausted tin mine where there were pools of water.They were not rich.....so such lakes were their swimming pool.They used to swim and have fun although the water was not very clean.For your information,their swimming spot is where Sunway Lagoon is located now.Whenever my family pass by Sunway Lagoon,my father always says this,"I used to swim here for free,but now it's so expensive just to go in".

My father and his friends used to catch fish at the same place.There was no river near the village.After catching sufficient fish for the day,they would start a fire and cook the fish.They would enjoy their meal and then return home happily for dinner.

There was also a rubbish dump site near his village.For him and his friends,it was a perfect place for treasure hunting.As rich people easily throw away slightly damaged toys,my father and his friends wold pick those things up,repair them,wash them and then use them at home.They couldn't really afford toys as their parents had more important use for money.So,the dump site was their source for fun toys and interesting objects.

As my father was an adventurous person,he would roam the village for hours.Soon,he became creative and thought of new ways to make use of the stuff he had around his village.He would collect planks,assemble them and invent simple machines like carts.He learned his carpentry skills from inventing such objects and makes good use of them till today.There were many other stories he told me......but I can't seem to recall them.

Now,his friends have become very different people.Some of them have become successful businessmen and lawyers.Some have become gang leaders and gangsters.Some still living the average life.When they got together for the football tournament,all of the forgot their current status and relived their childhood times.......even though it was only for a short while.

As I sat there watching his friends and listening to their jokes,I feel disappointed to have not been born in a village.The things they did might not sound very hygienic,but the important value was unity among friends.Imagine more than a hundred people laughing and joking together.....that was how special their unity was.I know our society today lacks such large-scale unity.If I could get one chance to live in a village for a long period of time,I don't think I would want to live my ordinary life again..............