A Shed for Mae

February 2, 2008 |

We have been busy the last couple of days. Nan’s mom prefers to cook the old fashioned way, using her wood stove. That means getting firewood in, and keeping it out of the rain during the wet season. And she has a couple of Rai planted with Eucalyptus for that purpose. But her wood shed was falling down, eaten up by termites.

So yesterday and today me, Nan her brother and his wife have been constructing a new wood shed for her. It was simple, just pull down what was left of the old one, then we rebuilt it by erecting four concrete pillars, and made the rest from bamboo, and put back the tin roof from the old one. So now she should be able to keep her firewood dry.

Mae often comes to our house too. Mostly to look after the vegetable garden in the back where she has planted a wide variety of vegetables, some chili bushes, tomatoes and various herbs. And when she see that we have very little charcoal left, she makes that too.

Mae can be quite quick at Yak-yak’ing people, including me and Nan. I can hear her from miles away. Her mouth going in overdrive over something. But I start to get to know her now. And whenever she deals out her verbal lashings, you can see the smile in her eyes.

And when ever she starts one of her tirades, Nan gives as good as she gets, and more often than not, mother and daughter end up howling with laughter.

I remember back when I was to ask her for her blessing to marry Nan. She looked me straight in the eyes for what seemed an eternity…then she nodded, and simply settled the matter by saying “ok”. Well, to days later I was a married man. She does not beat around the bush my mother in law.

That’s it!

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