A DREAM COME TRUE

Hong Kong

Some time in 1953, the only electrical appliance we had at home was a 20W light bulb  ( in a lamp ) it was  also the only source of light we had, as there were no windows in our room. My parents rented and shared a flat with four other families.

We did have a radio, but no electricity was needed because it was Radio Rediffusion, just a cable and a speaker. For about two Hong Kong dollars a month – just fifty cents per family, you could then listen and enjoy Chinese operas and Kung Fu stories. Not a bad deal for four families totaling eight adults and ten children.

That’s the way life was in the past, but honestly our predicament wasn’t bad compared to some others at that time. These families had to build their homes up in the hills where there was no electricity or water.  It was a risky thing when you had to do your homework by the light of a candle or kerosene lamp.  Moreover the Typhoon season each summer is another issue. In June 1960 Typhoon “Mary‘’ blew away numerous huts and ships, causing the loss of many lives.

Strangely, in present day Hong Kong only the very wealthy can afford to live in the hills, that’s where you will find celebrities and the nation’s top brass. 

Although we didn’t have much money, a common favourite back then was to get your portrait taken in the only photo studio in the Western district. We were lucky enough to have our family portraits taken in colour instead of the usual black and white. Let me explain how the photographs got their colour: They were taken like a normal black and white photograph and then the photographer used a brush and paint to colour the photograph. With a few careful strokes he would turn our pale cheeks rosy and the plain lips of my mother into a scarlet pout. This was the ingenious artistry provided by the shop before colour film became commercialized.

The carriage ride photograph that was taken of me in the photo studio depicted my childhood dream that one day I would be in the saddle riding a real horse.  The Queen’s Birthday Parade each year increased my fascination in horses, as I was mesmerized by fully uniformed Ceremonial Mounted Officers and the Transportation Party of donkeys.

Let us fast forward to 1990, Singapore.

I used to take Bus no. 166 every day, which went along Thomson Road. If you sat on the upper deck of the double-decker, you could see the horses in the Singapore Polo Club. Visions of my childhood dreams surged back reminding me of my fascination in horse once again.

When I began riding lessons at the Singapore Polo  Club in 1999, it was that "little boy" who felt that sense of happiness and fulfillment, and today I reminisce about how things were back then and how well things turned out for that "little boy" at the parade!

Presently, after moving from Hong Kong to Singapore, Capt Thomas Young and family has been living on the sunny island for almost 15 years now. He finally pursued his dream by riding in the Singapore Polo Club and actively participates in events organized by the Club and the Riding for Disabled Association (RDA). He is also a Committee member of the Singapore Pony Club helping young kids to realize their riding dreams.

The author can be contacted at: This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it