Passage 2 - The Final Farewell
Read the following passage.
Paragraph 1
Nina awoke to the cheerful twittering and chattering of birds outside. Looking around, she remembered where she was and an overwhelming sadness gripped her. She was in her grandmother's house in the village. She had spent her childhood in this very house. Everything about the house brought sweet memories that she would cherish forever.
Paragraph 2
When Nina was three months old, her parents had gone to live overseas, leaving her in the care of her grandmother. Eventually, they had wanted her to come and live with them, but she was reluctant to do so. She had become very attached to her grandmother. Besides, she was doing well at the village school. Not wanting to upset her, Nina’s parents decided not to move her.
Paragraph 3
However, when Nina was in Year Six of primary school, her younger sister was born. Her parents thought that it was important for the sisters to be together; so this time they insisted on Nina joining them after finishing her primary education. While Nina was excited to be with her baby sister, she was sad to leave her grandmother.
Paragraph 4
Nina had adjusted easily to her new secondary school and enjoyed looking after her baby sister and playing with her. Yet she often longed for her grandmother’s company and always looked forward to the annual family holiday back in the village.
Paragraph 5
Nina’s mind came back to the present. She sat up slowly and glanced at her sister who was still sleeping beside her. Quietly, she rolled up the mengkuang mat on which she had slept and put it away behind the clothes rack. She took her towel from the rack and moved towards the door.
Paragraph 6
The wooden floorboards creaked as she stepped into the bare living room. All that remained was a shoebox with her name written on it. There was something in that shoebox that had once belonged to her grandmother and was now hers to keep. Nina’s parents had asked her to choose something from the house as a memento. Taking out the silver jewellery box, her eyes blurred with tears. Her late grandmother used to let her play with the trinkets inside the box.
Paragraph 7
Nina opened the kitchen door that led into the compound. She was going to the bathroom. There was a well in the bathroom. Wanting to feel the cool water on her face again, she lowered the pail into the well and expertly pulled it back up by the attached rope. There it was – a pail full of refreshingly cool water for her. She remembered that every evening she would draw water from the well for the lovingly-tended plants her grandmother had arranged neatly in front of the house.
Paragraph 8
Emerging from the bathroom, Nina strolled around the old house one last time, with a heavy heart. It was a traditional Malay house, built on stilts above the ground. The raised floor kept dampness away, which was especially important during the rainy season. The gaps between the floorboards let the air in and kept the house cool. Nina used to play with her childhood friends in the space beneath the house. At that time, they were small enough to stand beneath the house without having to stoop. They whiled away the hours playing congkak or batu limbang.
Paragraph 9
Nina walked past the veranda and noticed the windows of the front bedroom were open. Her parents must have woken up. She went back into the kitchen. Her mother was preparing breakfast. They would be returning home later in the morning after handing over the house to its new owner. Nina’s father, who had inherited the house, had decided to sell it.
Paragraph 10
After breakfast, they loaded some things into the car and waited for Haji Musa, the new owner, to arrive. Nina’s sister was impatient to get back to their own home. Nina, on the other hand, longed to linger at the hold house for a few more hours but Haji Musa arrived punctually. Nina’s father gave him the house keys. They chatted for a short time and then Nina and her family got into the car for the journey home. As they drove away, Nina looked back at the old house and bade a silent farewell to her childhood. She knew that her life would never be the same again. She felt scared and excited at the same time. “Perhaps it is all for good,” she thought.
Questions
Answer the following questions in the order given.
From paragraph 1
1. How did Nina feel after she woke up?
From paragraph 2
2. Why didn’t Nina want to live with her parents overseas? Give 2 reasons.
From paragraph 3
3. When was Nina’s sister born?
4. What were the two emotions Nina felt when she was told that she had to live with her parents?
From paragraph 4
5. How did life change for Nina after her baby sister was born?
From paragraph 5
6. “Quietly, she rolled up the mengkuang mat on which she had slept and put it away behind the clothes rack.”
Why did the writer use the word ‘quietly’ in the above statement?
From paragraph 6
7. Why did Nina cry when she was looking at the silver jewellery box?
From paragraph 7
8. Why had Nina drawn water from the well every evening?
From paragraph 8
9. Write down the meanings of the following words from this paragraph in context.
a) Emerging
b) Strolled
c) Heavy
d) Dampness
e) Stoop
f) Whiled away
From paragraph 9
10. Why did Nina have to leave the house?
From paragraphs 6 to 8
11. Write down the various memories that Nina had about the house and the time she had with her grandmother, that are mentioned in these paragraphs.
From paragraph 10
12. In your own words, describe the different feelings Nina and her sister had about leaving Grandmother’s house.
Answer Scheme
- How did Nina feel after she woke up?
= Nina felt an overwhelming sadness after she woke up. - Why didn’t Nina want to live with her parents overseas? Give 2 reasons.
= she had become very attached to her grandmother;
= she was doing well in her village school - When was Nina’s sister born?
= Nina’s sister was born when Nina was in Year 6 of primary school. - What were the two emotions Nina felt when she was told that she had to live with her parents?
Nina felt excitement at the thought of getting to be with her baby sister, but sadness at the thought of leaving her grandmother. - How did life change for Nina after her baby sister was born?
= Nina was going to be leaving her grandmother to live with her parents and new baby sister. - “Quietly, she rolled up the mengkuang mat on which she had slept and put it away behind the clothes rack.”
Why did the writer use the word ‘quietly’ in the above statement?
= the writer used the word ‘quietly’ in the above statement to show that Nina did not want to wake her little sister up. - Why did Nina cry when she was looking at the silver jewellery box?
= Nina cried when she was looking at the silver jewellery box because it reminded her of how her late grandmother would let her play with the trinkets inside it. - Nina did this to water her grandmother’s plants.
- Write down the meanings of the following words from this paragraph in context.
a) Emerging – coming out
b) Strolled –walked in a relaxed way
c) Heavy – very sad
d) Dampness - wetness
e) Stoop -bend
f) Whiled away – spent - Why did Nina have to leave the house?
Nina’s father, who had inherited the house, had decided to sell it. - Write down the various memories that Nina had about the house and the time she had with her grandmother, that are mentioned in these paragraphs.
a) Nina found a shoebox that belonged to her grandmother and was now hers to keep.
b) She took out the silver jewellery box. Her late grandmother used to let her play with the trinkets inside the box.
c) There was a well in the bathroom. She remembered that every evening she would draw water from the well for the lovingly-tended plants her grandmother had arranged neatly in front of the house.
d) Nina and her friends used to play in the space under the house as it was a stilt house. At that time, they were small enough to stand beneath the house without having to stoop. They whiled away the hours playing congkak or batu limbang. - In your own words, describe the different feelings Nina and her sister had about leaving Grandmother’s house.
= Nina’s sister was eagerly waiting to return to their own house whereas Nina wanted to stay in their grandmother’s house for a longer time.
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