24 Flavours — 11. One Thousand and One Attap Chees, Please

This 24 Flavours literary journey is part of a series of writings from a few years back when Math Paper Press was actively publishing it. The series has since gone into hiatus but I’ll sharing the pieces that were written. Each piece is based on a food theme, 24 in total. I had devised mine to centre on my family, and some of the storylines are interconnected. Not all 24 stories are completed so you’ll have to check back periodically to read all of them.

“Let’s go for char kway teow at the Lorong 5 hawker centre. Your mum can have her favourite chendol too.”

Ma, Kor and I felt utter disbelief, awe and relief all at the same time by Pa’s late-night supper request.

We had just left SGH after nearly nine hours of observation and a barrage of tests. Earlier in the day, Pa had thought he was going to have a heart attack again after a heavy lunch. Luckily, the doctor said everything looked clear on the ECG, and no clear symptoms that a heart attack was going to happen. In any case, if Pa could ask for his favourite food after a false alarm, he had to be okay.

I was a few spoonfuls into my ice kachang when Pa plopped his share of attap chees into my bowl. I hesitated telling him that I liked attap chee when I was seven, and not that much, now that I was seventeen. But then decided that any gesture of love from Pa was always rare, and should very much be cherished.

So Pa had his char kway teow.

Ma had her chendol.

Kor had his black chai tow kway.

And I had my ice kachang… with extra attap chees.

We were a Happy Family… for that moment.