If Trees Could Talk, Oh The Stories They'd Tell

If a tree could share the words it hears and the people it sees, I bet it would be better than Netflix ;p

Dad, my youngest and I were on a short road trip. We had not travelled out of state since 18th March, 2020 for obvious reasons. There were some official stuff to sort out and Dad is old-school like that. He rather do it at the counter, talk to real people face to face than do it online. So off we went on that 305km drive.

Apparently to pay quit rent, there is no notification, and the onus is on us to pay every year. I guess, that's like our driving license, we just got to keep track. Dad used to be super on the ball, very meticulous with bills and filing reciepts and documents - he still is but not the way he used to be as he is getting a little forgetful. Only one of us were allowed to go in and Dad insisted, so I let him do his thing.

Going to Johor Baru (or passing by on the way to Singapore), Mum's hometown, where most of my younger days were lived, means the columbarium is part of the itenarary - to say hello, hi to Mum. She had requested to be with her Mum in that last couple of years in the event anything happened and so we did as requested.

This is her view, and I think she would have liked it - she loved her garden. However, we are now thinking of bringing her back so she is closer to us. Not that we think she lives in her urn, but ... We checked on the procedure and we have to make a police report for the release of the urn. Dad wants to on some days, and not on others. I too am undecided because she wanted to be in her hometown and where her mother is, so we have to give this more thought. _{Oh, in case you are wondering, if she could say something about it she'd say do what makes us happy because that's who she was.}

We went to check out my brother's first house which he bought in his early 20s thinking he was going to live there. Over time, he paid through his nose to the bank with interests especially with the 1998 crash, and then we've had some pretty nasty tenants too, thefts by addicts and the like.

Again, the last tenant has left the house in a state, in fact the worst ever. Bad water marks everywhere so we need to see where the leak is coming from, broken sinks, rubbish piled high, weed higher than our knees, unpaid utility bills. My brother's experience with this house makes me wonder if property is really an investment...

We stayed in a 3-Star hotel - but I'd say motel, for a night. We were trying to budget and you get what you pay for. Tiny, and their so called family room was one queen sie bed. So dad, son and me had to squeeze in and of course, I was pinned to the wall. I don't move much in my sleep and my son is slim, so still manageable. Though he slept in the middle and moved around quite a bit.

To top that, the window latch was broken and I couldn't shut it tight so the light sleeper that I am, heard the bikes, people talking, cars drving past. And my Dad is claustrophic, and the room was so small, he asked for one light to be left on and the light was kinda bright.

So, let's just say I did not sleep well and was so happy to back in my bed last night.

_{All images are mine}