My siblings and I grew up together in a shophouse just above a furniture maker. Those were the days when our parents were too busy with their work to look after us. So, we took care of each other playing together in the neighbourhood. We loved to visit the furniture maker’s workshop. There long benches, wrenches, saws, wood planks, half finished furniture around place.

The smell of wood, varnish and glue filled the air! The unmistakeable smell which we were so accustomed to. I can still remember that pot of glue which was always set on a glowing stove. Innocent as we were, once in a while we would playfully stir it and use the glue to stick things together. The craftsmen were nice as though it didn’t bothered them.

When I entered high school, we moved to a new neighbourhood. The air was ooh! So refreshing. Thinking back.. Why? What dreadful stuff we have been sniffing everyday!
Help, rehabs! I really believed that kind of air pollution has made us dull in our early years of development. In contrast, my four younger siblings were much brighter students than my eldest sister and I.