A Relaxing Shower

Is it weird if a person actually sets his/her mind in motion while taking a shower? I find that I think a lot about life, my studies and sometimes I even think what has happened past/present in my life. I know that some people have absolutely no thoughts whatsoever while they shower. Shower means shower, nothing more than that.

Just now I reflected on an autobiographical documentary, "51 Birch Street" directed by Doug Block. I watched it on Tuesday during the Documentary Theory & Practice lecture. Block's documentary is about his family, his parents, what does marriage mean and also about himself. The unique thing about Block is he was never famous. He's a video cameraman who mainly recorded wedding ceremonies. I found the documentary particularly interesting because it's about an ordinary Jewish American middle-class family. Well ordinary until we find out that it's pretty dysfunctional too.

Before I came over to Brisbane, I'd been toying with the idea of making a documentary about my parents way back in 2005. Two separate documentaries about my parents' childhood. My father grew up in Pudu while my mom spent her growing up years in Ampang. I wanted to document their childhood.

Watching the documentary gave me ideas in terms of the treatment. Block gave the audience an intimate insight into the lives of his family members particularly his mother. During the interview with his sister, she mentioned that just by reading their late mother's poems, nobody would've known Mina (their mother) was a wife and mother.

Mina kept a diary for many, many years. A hidden diary. A diary which she typed in her deepest, darkest fears. A diary which documented her happiness as well as sorrow. Nobody knew about it until the day she died and their father remarried 3-months later. Her children found her hidden diaries while they were clearing the house because their father was shifting to Miami with his new wife.

It got me thinking... So what do I know about my parents besides them being my parents? The answer that I got was I've only known them as my parents all my life. What were they like before they got married? What were they like at work? How did they meet up? Why did they get together? Why did they get married? What was their childhood like? Did my parents have any particular hobbies? I know my mother loves travelling and my father loves reading especially books on religion. But other than that, how was it like growing up post-World War II and pre-Merdeka Day? What about the rolling 60's and 70's? What about the economy crisis in the 80's and 90's, many people were unemployed etc?

In a way, blogging helped my family to discover the other side of me. A side which surprised my aunt and cousin. They didn't know the other me - my thoughts, interests and influences. They only know me as this quiet, shy and reserved person. Even though my parents have never openly told me this, I think they like reading my blog. I know they sometimes print it out to read. I hope they like my pictures too as I've discovered the beauty of taking the most trivial of things which once I look through the lens means so much more than just a mere photo.

And so I've to take this time to discover or rediscover for that matter, things about my family. A side which is often overlooked because they have slipped into their parental shoes every so often that I've forgotten about the other side of their persona.