Anak Saya, Anna

When I was first introduced to Tepuq Sina Doh Ayu, the woman I was assigned to, I was nervous. To be honest, nervous doesn't even begin to describe how I was feeling but somehow, over the course of two weeks, she became my family. To this day, I still wouldn't know how to describe our funny little bond that formed through Lendra, her grandaughter. Tepuq was a little shy at first but Lendra certainly wasn’t. By the end of the first day, Lendra and I had became fast friends, chasing and poking fun at each other while Tepuq watched us from her favourite spot by the window, occasionally smiling to herself at our antics. After a while, she would join in our conversations and slowly but surely, we grew comfortable in each other’s presence.

Lendra and I outside the longhouse

Eventually, Tepuq and I fell into a rhythm where I would teach her some English in the mornings over coffee and biscuits.  Later, we’d go out to her little fish pond or pineapple farm to work. She was reluctant at first to let me into her fish pond. I was, after all, a ‘budak bandar’ (city kid) and not used to dirt and mud. But after some convincing, she told me that I could catch the fish and put them into the bucket placed between the two of us. Just like that, no instructions or tutorials, she gave me the freedom of figuring out how I would catch the fish. After what felt like 20 or so failed attempts, I caught my first fish, named him Fishy, and walked (waddled) over to her through the mud to show her my first catch. My excitement must have amused her because she stopped working for a few seconds to laugh at me. That day was one of many milestones in Bario when for the first time since I met her, she said her first English sentence to me with a shy smile : “Tomorrow catch again”

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Catching fish with Tepuq and her family

At about 11 am, we would stop what we were doing, clean ourselves up and start the walk towards SK Bario to pick Lendra up from school. The walk to and from school was something I looked forward to because Tepuq would teach us both simple Christian songs that she had learnt over time. One of my favourites was ‘Jalan Dalam Terang Tuhan’ which she sang almost every day. Along the way, I would point out a few objects and teach her their English names and in exchange, she would teach me their Kelabit names.

Walking home from school

However, there was nothing I could teach her that could even come close to what she taught me. Tepuq showed me what selflessness truly meant by the way she lived her life. From the way she walked to school each day for her granddaughter despite her aching knees to the way she offered me her hat when the sun shone down on us while we worked.  “ Ini anak saya, Anna”, she would say to her friends when they asked her who I was. Thank you, Tepuq for making me feel so loved.  Uih lian ngen iko.( I love you)

<3

Anna