Reminiscing my childhood life, grandpa used to cycle 8 miles to his plantation every other day, weekly, carrying his vintage metal canister filled with black coffee on his ancient bicycle. At the plantation, he would cleared up tall grasses, dug soil to make space for new fruit trees and harvested oil palms. He did it all on his own. Meaningful hardship, he would come home with a huge basket of tropical fruits at the back of his bicycle no matter how heavy it was. Jack fruits, durians, rambutans, papayas, you name it..
My grandpa was tall, well-built, and fit for an 82 years old man. He was extremely tanned and had almost roasted rough and tough skin for working tirelessly under the sun. Thankfully, there was his brown cowboy hat that protected his head from torrid heat. Chatting with him wasn’t that easy as he had impaired hearing. All his life was dedicated to working.
I was too young to understand his persistence, but surely I felt his commitment.
Despite life was like a playground, I could vividly remember my first job as a little sales girl. I helped my grandpa to sell jack fruits in the morning market at the age of twelve. Sometimes, my brothers came along. ‘The old man and his granddaughter‘ was what a few used to address us. Sometimes, to earn a little more, he would take me on his bicycle around the neighbourhood. I was a mini loudspeaker, calling out for potential customers as he cleared up the unsold balance. To call it a day, he gave out some jack fruits to customers as complimentary. “Sufficient will do. Some side income to spend.” – he said humbly. My grandpa incentivised me 10 bucks for each day that I’d worked.
A once in a lifetime childhood experience, my grandpa taught me generosity, persistence, boldness, and entrepreneurship. Most of all, passion drove his persistence. Whilst he is no longer in this world, I kept these values at heart.
In spite of hardship, my grandpa was a very happy man all because he enjoyed what he did. He made me believe that passion will drive us far and we will earn what we deserve eventually. More importantly, success will only be meaningful if only we work hard for it.
