Raya Rounds - #2

As planned, today I went to visit Sofie's family. I informed them 2 days ago that I'd be coming, and told them to get their baju raya ready as I'd be taking their family photo. When I got to their house at about 11 am, Sofie were ironing their clothes while the last of the kids just had their bath after kena letiaq by Sofie to hurry up before I arrived. I noticed Ika, the youngest girl, had some make up on. She did the make up herself - using whatever was left of Sofie's old make-up set, which Sofie used when she was still working some years ago. For a seven year old, I'd say the make up wasn't bad at all. At least she didn't look as though she was going to perform for a Wayang Cina!

Welcome to Sofie's home. This is the front door...

And this is the wall inside the house...

There's only one bedroom, so Sofie usually sleeps in the hall (if I may call it so) together with her daughter. If they need to change clothes, the boys and girls would take turns to use the one and only room. During my previous visits, the queen mattress was at the hall, so I'd usually sit on the mattress when I visit them. However for Raya, they kept the mattress at the back... leaned against the wall.

Outside the house, there is no proper drainage. So whenever it rains heavily, sometimes the house would get flooded.

I asked if anyone had visited them since Raya. Well yeah, a few school friends of Sofie's sons did visit, but I was the first adult visitor since Raya! So you can just imagine their excitement, especially since I brought along lunch and a hamper. Somehow people usually give hampers to big big bosses who can actually afford all those stuff. By right, people like Sofie's family are the ones who deserve it more. Imagine her children's excitement at seeing this hamper which was almost as tall as Ika.

This time I had lunch together with them. I knew they loved chicken, so I suppose you can guess what I brought along for lunch, huh?

I had a good chat with the kids during lunch. Interestingly, Sofie told me that when her sister went back to their father's hometown, their father, a bomoh, "tolong tengok-tengokkan" and said that Ika has also been infected with HIV. Hmmm... I wonder if his services can be used for the premarital mandatory HIV testing! No comment on his methods, but I hope with the diagnosis given by her father, Sofie would bring her kids for blood tests soon instead of postponing things. I told her to bring both Ika and her 11 year old brother, Saiful for blood tests.

What I need to personally do next is to bring Saiful to get his eyes tested and rearrange for another appointment with an eye specialist for the boy. Sofie used to bring him for appointments at the Ipoh GH eye clinic, but ever since her ex-husband began deserting her, Sofie could no longer afford to bring the boy for appointments (no need to pay to see the doctor but she still needed money to bring the boy to Ipoh). The last appointment was in 2004 - definitely the records are no longer to be found. Saiful would need a new referral letter to get an appointment with the specialist.

Sofie did bring the boy to an optician recently just to get his eyes tested for free - the boy actually needs glasses with power of over 200 for each eye! And he is still not wearing glasses because Sofie couldn't afford to pay for them! In school, he sits right in front of the class... even then sometimes the writings on the board were not clear at all.

I still have some money with me, donated by friends and blog readers - I intend to use some of it to make glasses for the boy. I promised them I'd come again during one of these days to bring Saiful to the optician.

Tomorrow... next stop... Kak Ana's shelter home to visit Anita, her son and my little Cek Mek...