The Cat Story

During my recent trip to the Tabin Wildlife Reserve, I befriended a pensioner, Bryan Paul Lai. He was once a school teacher and he last worked as the Headmaster of St. Patrick Primary School, Tawau until his retirement in 1998. He loves writing and he launched his first book entitled “The Joy of Life: The Land Below the Wind” in June 2014 (Read here).

His story is similar to another book called “Footprints in the Paddy Fields“ written by a Sabahan lady writer, Tina Kisil. She too was once a school teacher. I can relate to many of the incidences she talked about in the book especially the paddy planting season (Read here).

“The Joy of Life: The Land Below the Wind” is a story of Bryan’s childhood in Sandakan and Tawau during the 1940’s and 1950’s. Bryan also wrote about the horrific times in Sabah during the Japanese Occupation from 1941 to 1945.

This book evoked many memories of my childhood days spent in the village. We were carefree and also engaged in playing many similar games and antics to pass our time those days. One particular incident that he wrote reminded me of the Cat Story. He wrote about the death of his Pilipino grand-uncle:

“When my grand-uncle Rodriguez died in 1954, I was there and was instructed to sit by the side of the coffin to prevent any cat from jumping over the body. It  was believed that if a cat jumped over a body, the dead body would resurrect”.

I discover that the “strictly no cat is allowed to jump over a dead body” is almost something of a universally accepted perception or even belief system. I was told even at my tender age by my mother that a dead body should never be jumped over by a cat. We were always warned of the dreadful consequence of seeing a “walking dead” if a cat somehow accidentally jumped over the dead body! In those days, whenever someone died and his body would be kept in the house until burial. All cats would be gathered and caged to prevent such unfortunate disaster from happening!

When I recollect such tale of a dead body being resurrected by a cat, I cannot help but think of the fright and horror moment in my childhood days of watching those Chinese movies that featured the Jiangshi (殭屍) or the Chinese “hopping” zombie. The Jiangshi was often portrayed as a stiff corpse dressed in the official garment of the Qing Dynasty. It moved only in forward direction with its arms outstretched.

All kinds of explanation have been put forward to explain the veracity of this belief system. Once I heard someone gave a more scientific explanation: When the cat fur rubs against the corpse as it jumps over the body, it would induce static electricity. The electric charge if sufficiently large would cause the body to be lifted up. This is similar to rubbing a comb with the hair and then place it over pieces of small paper. The pieces of small paper would jump and hop about like the hopping Jiangshi! Incredible explanation!

Until these days, this belief system is still being faithfully followed. The most recent is during the death of my father-in-law.  Even though this is a myth, it is still hard to do away with this practice simply because no one dares to conduct a verification exercise by putting a cat to jump over a dead body!

When this Cat Story first momentarily crossed my mind after reading Bryan’s story, I was reminded of a marriage vow uttered during the wedding of my son with his bride at the recent beach wedding (Read here):

“………… I will still love you even when you become a zombie…………”.

I admit I have practically forgotten most of what’s said in the vow, but this very phrase somehow is unique and is difficult to forget!

Revisiting the Basel Church Retreat Centre, Kundasang

On the way to Lahad Datu on 8 September 2015, we made a detour a short distance after passing through Kundasang town to the Jabez Resort built on a small hill 300mm away from the highway.

Not many are aware that the Basel Church Retreat Centre at Kundasang which was once a popular place for holding church retreats is now called the Jabez Resort. I for one only came to discover the name change quite recently when I drove by the road to Ranau.

 

Since the early 2000’s, interest of churches to hold church retreats at this Centre began to decline. Beach resorts and hotels became the fashionable venues for conducting such activity. Because of the lack of revenue to maintain this Centre, Basel Church decided to privatize it. The Concessionaire upon taking over converted it into a hill resort and renamed it the Jabaz Resort.

 

Over the years, many hill resorts and budget hotels have sprung up all over Kundasang. The Concessionaire too found it less and less profitable to operate this Resort. The Resort is now run by the Church after the Concessionaire returned it back to the Church.

 

To be honest, I have yet to attend any of the church retreats held in the beach resorts or the hotels. My memories are still with those times spent in the RC Bundu Tuhan Retreat Centre and the Basel Church Retreat Centre in the late 80’s and the 90’s. To me, this traditional retreat centre by virtue of its “remoteness” is ideal for families to get away from daily routine and to spend time together as well as with other friends exclusively without any third party interference. These days, comfort plus other leisure facilities are probably the overriding consideration. That could be the reason why hotels and resorts are so much more attractive these days!

A small concrete staircase used to connect the higher platform where the Centre is built with the lower platform which serves as the car park. The Concessionaire upon taking over had carried out fairly major renovation and re-landscaping of the compound. A huge staircase now covers the slope.

**************************************************

The Retreat Centre and the slope in the 1990's.

Teenagers from our Church had such great and fun time at
the Retreat Centre in the 1990's.

Never a Dull Moment: Tabin Wildlife Reserve

The Sabah Civil Service Pensioners Association under the chairmanship of  Datuk Wilfred Lingham has earlier decided to conduct a “brain storming” session at the Tabin Wildlife Resort, Lahad Datu.

 

A Church friend who is in the Committee extended an invitation to us to join them for a 3D2N tour of this Wildlife Reserve. We accepted the invitation without hesitation because we knew that this is an opportunity that is not easy to come by.

 

The whole road trip from home to the Reserve and back covered a distance of 885 Km. The road is all tarred except the final 27Km leading to the Wildlife Reserve. This final stretch is unsealed gravel road and was not well maintained. Travelling along this stretch would have been so much more challenging and uncomfortable if without a 4-wheeled drive!

 

We stayed at the Tabin Wildlife Resort, a hideaway in a secondary jungle built some 10 years ago by the then owner, Datuk Wilfred Lingham. This Resort has 10 units of timber chalets, a dining hall, souvenir shop,  information gallery and a conference room. All the chalets are erected by the bank of Lipad River with some of the chalets on fairly steep hill slope. All the chalets are linked up with timber walkways that allow visitors to have scenic view of the surrounding area. Each chalet is complete with private balcony, air-conditioner, ceiling fan and hot water shower.

 

I would say that the itinerary arranged by the Resort was sufficient to keep us busy throughout the stay. We had night safari, morning jungle walk and night jungle trekking. Of the 16 pensioners in our group, only a handful of four or at most five were keen and adventurous to do the jungle trekking while most were contented with staying in the air-conditioned chalets.

 

I had wanted very much to see some of the large mammals Tabin is famous for, the Pigmy elephant and the Sumatran Rhino. Unfortunately, we did not manage to see any of these. Somehow, I could sense that the staff were not too keen to take us to trek the “Elephant Trial”. I believe the staff have yet to fully recover from the shock of accident on 7 December 2011 when a young Australian woman was gored to death in the Elephant Trial leading to the Lipad Mud Volcano (Read Here). Our guide Mohammad told us that he was one of the staff sent to retrieve the body of the woman. That must have been traumatic for him. Since the accident, rules have also been changed and visitors are no longer allowed to trek the jungle without a guide.

 

Still, our night safari, morning walk and night trekking allowed us to see quite a variety of animals.  The macaque monkeys, gibbon monkeys, Malayan civet, owl, eagle, small jungle crab, pit viper, fire ants are some of the mammals, birds and insects we saw. Some of these animals we saw for a split moment while a few for sufficiently long duration.

If you ask me: will you visit this place again? I would say that it’s most unlikely unless I am assured of seeing the pygmy elephants or the Rhino or Orang Utan or the Proboscis monkeys. But then, this is only a wishful thinking because their sightings cannot be pre-planned.

Group photo with the Committee of the Sabah Civil Service Pensioners Association.

Chalet we stayed

Phobia of suspension bridge.

Morning Jungle Walk

The Macaque

Pit viper and stick insect spotted in the night jungle trekking.

Lipad Waterfall

With our Guide, Mohammad.

Lipad Mud Volcano.

A very recent video on eruption of the mud volcano uploaded in Facebook on 19 September 2022. (Reproduced from Facebook).

We were told by the Guide that if you are ever chased by an agitated elephant, always run uphill and if you find one such big tree, hide behind one of these huge roots.

Post:

Video of the eruption of the mud volcano added on 19 September 2022.

Teeth

I had my regular dental appointment at the government Periodontics Clinic on 24.08.2015. It was my 33rd visit since being referred to the clinic on 17.06.2011. The initial referral came about because the private dentist I had been seeing at the time lacked the necessary equipment to perform deep probing and root cleaning. In hindsight, that referral turned out to be a blessing in disguise.

Since then, I’ve no longer needed to return to my usual private dentist. Under the care of government dentists, I’ve been getting my teeth checked on average every 45 days. Another bonus: the cost. Each visit used to be just RM2 to RM4, and now that I’ve turned 60, it’s free. With that kind of regular attention and affordability, I really can't say I haven’t been well looked after by the government dental service.

That said, government dental clinics are not the best option when it comes to urgent care or “quick fixes.” For instance, when one of my molars chipped, I had it fixed with a metal cap by a private dentist in just over a week. Had I gone through the public system, it would likely have taken a couple of months, if not longer!

Out of all my visits to the Periodontics Clinic, I’ve only been seen by a specialist periodontist three times - once for the pre-operation check, then the actual gum surgery, and finally a follow-up review a week later. All other consultations, cleanings, and reviews have been conducted by young graduate dentists.

During my most recent appointment, just before my name was called, I witnessed an interesting moment. An Indian lady (IL) walked out of a consultation room, followed closely by a young dentist (YD).

YD: "Remember me, Mrs. ……, I was your student!"
IL (looking closely): "Yes, I remember you..."

They moved aside and chatted for about five minutes, reminiscing, before she finally left.

********************************************************

When my turn came, I struck up a conversation with the young dentist:

ME: "Are you new here?"
YD: "I’ve been here for two months now."
ME: "Was that lady your teacher?"
YD: "Yes, my tuition teacher."

Something clicked in my memory.

ME: "Was your tuition in Taman Khidmat?"
YD (surprised): "Yes! How did you know?"
ME: "I live there. She’s my neighbour. I’m surprised she didn’t get her husband or son to look at her teeth instead of coming all the way here."

(I happen to know that her husband is a private dentist, and her son is also a government dentist who once examined my teeth during a short posting at this very clinic.)

YD: "I’m surprised too. Maybe her husband’s clinic doesn’t have the equipment we use here."

Before I left, I asked for his name.

YD: "I’m Dr. Tay."
ME: "Tay? Is your father Mr. Tay who used to be an engineer with the Water Department in Tawau?"
YD: "Yes! You are...?"
I introduced myself and asked him to send my regards to his father, which he gladly promised to do.

Dr. Tay is not the only young dentist I've met who happens to be the child of someone I know. Over the course of these many visits, I’ve crossed paths with several young practitioners whose parents are my peers.

While these young dentists may lack the clinical experience of senior practitioners, their enthusiasm, professionalism, and eagerness to serve often make up for it. Some take the time to walk you through the basics - how to brush properly, maintain oral hygiene, and even recommend new dental gadgets. A few are exceptionally polite, constantly checking in on your comfort throughout the treatment. Others, however, are quiet and reserved, rarely asking whether the pain is bearable.

But like all professionals, they are human too - with their own personalities, strengths, and learning curves. And with each visit, I’m reminded not just of how small the world can be, but also how much dedication and energy this new generation brings to their work.

One of the Many We Crossed Path in Life - Low Wooi Kiang

Company annual lunch just before Chinese New Year in 2007.
This is one of the photos uploaded by Low Wooi Kiang in the
chat group. Low Wooi Kiang is seen standing at the back row
second from left.
My son Paul (standing at back row 4th from left) was with our
firm undergoing training while studying for his civil engineering
degree at Newcastle University, Australia .

We’ve lost count of the number of people who have come through our company - joined, contributed, and eventually moved on. Low Wooi Kiang is one of those individuals. He was with us for just over a year, from mid-June 2006 to mid-July 2007.

Originally from Sungai Petani, Kedah, Low studied at Universiti Malaysia Sabah (UMS) and, upon graduation, joined our office as an engineer. Like many who work far from home, the pull to return to his roots was understandably strong. After a little more than a year, he left us and headed back to Peninsular Malaysia, eventually landing a job in Lumut, Perak - a neighbouring state to his hometown.

When we visited Lumut in February 2012 (read here), I made an effort to look him up. Unfortunately, we couldn’t meet due to a prior commitment he had. At that time, he was already working with a construction company specializing in offshore structures for the oil and gas industry.

Recently, Low created a chat group to reconnect with his former colleagues from his 2006–2007 stint. He shared a collection of photos - memories from his time with us - including a selfie he took with me back in January 2015, when we unexpectedly ran into each other at KLIA2 while I was en route from KL back to Kota Kinabalu.

Throughout life, we cross paths with many people. Some stay longer than others. Some move on and are never seen or heard from again. It has always been my hope that these encounters, however brief, are mutually enriching - that they leave a positive mark and make a difference, however small.

My encounter with Low Wooi Kiang has certainly done that. It has given me a sense of satisfaction and quiet achievement, knowing that in some way, our time together was meaningful and lasting.

23 January 2015

Taking a Stand

“Thoughts do more. Words do much. Actions do much more” - Israelmore Ayivor

Weeks in and weeks out, the Church has been urging people to pray for a government that upholds justice, transparency, accountability and equality irrespective of ethnicity and religious belief. It is so much easier to pray in the comfort of a sanctuary under the full blast of air-conditioners.

There is no denying that God can indeed move mountain through prayer. Yet many of the biblical incidents did not happen just by uttering of prayers alone. A reluctant Jonah was commissioned to go to Nineveh to deliver the message and to turn the people to God. The walls of Jericho city was brought down after Joshua and his men spent seven days matching around the city.

The corrupt regime of Marcos was ousted not by verbal rhetoric alone. The change came about through the People Power when men and women risked their lives and matched against tyranny. The dawning of Arab Spring commenced when men and women walked to the ground to demand change. Some paid with their lives.

This is not a call for revolution. This is a mere realization that physical presence at Ground Zero is required if one truly desires change when mere words simply fall to deaf ears.

This rally at Ground Zero may not yield anything. At least, my conscience is clear fully aware that I have been THERE to help initiate change. Change that is unlikely achieved in the comfort of home and sanctuary. Of course, this is not a rebuke of those who did not turn up.  It does not mean that those who were at Ground Zero are more patriotic and those who did not go love the country less. Everyone is entitled to exercise his own free will and conviction.

I am particularly impressed by this group of university students who turned up to make a stand on 29 August. I believe that these girls veiled themselves not because of religious reason but to pre-empt the possibility of being expelled if their identities are discovered.

In the rally, we met a number of pastors including my church pastor. I have great admiration for pastors who not only encourage and mobilise people to pray for the nation, but they are personally convicted enough to be in and with the crowd.

**************************************************

This cousin of mine though much younger than me has been an inspiration. His disgust against bad government indirectly challenged me to make a stand. He helped to get our T-shirts for this significant event!

I met my cousin again in the second day when we matched from Likas towards KK City. Unfortunately, the match had to be aborted because the FRU set up a massive road block to prevent us from moving forward!

We are glad we have gone through this.