One End Is Another Start
Cecilia, Ma Hei Man
“If you ask me what have been changed, inevitably everything except my heart.”
What will you think of when you hear Green Island (Ilha Verde)? Wooden house? Reconstruction or social housing? For Lee, 83, the village head’s wife, the Green Island is a memory of her life. Since the reconstruction for the public housing in the district in Feb 2011, the Lees’ life in Green Island has come to a full stop. The end of one space is the start of another.
Green Island is Mrs. Lee’s 3/4 life memory
The Lee’s family had been living in Green Island since 1950s. However, soon after moving into Green Island, the Lees encountered a conflagration that destroyed all the huts, including theirs. Fortunately, the Macao government, Ho In’s family and four local non-profit organizations donated to rebuild Green Island so that the people had houses to live again.
“At the beginning, we, including my husband, children, and parents-in-law, were difficult to find a big house. Luckily, Green Island was big and spacious enough, and the house cost less than MOP 100 dollars only,” Lee recalled.
Before the reconstruction, the Lees owned two houses and one grocery store named “Cheong Kei”. Living in Green Island was a good time for Lee as she described, “I could open and close the store whenever I liked. Although I only earned around MOP 300 a day, I enjoyed my life.”
Even though she has moved out, she still misses her times in Green Island. “At that time, many friends and relatives came to the grocery store and chatted with me. We chatted like we had forgotten the time as we usually kept chatting until the midnight,” she said.
“Everything has changed except my heart.”
Finally, the Lees had to move away and end their life in the Green Island without any choice. The government compensated MOP 160,000 for their houses and the grocery store, while the Lee’s family needed to pay MOP 230,000 in buying an apartment near the Border Gate.
As she mentioned, everything has changed except her heart, resembling the situation of Green Island that everything has disappeared except the temple. And the temple has become the only connection between Lee and Green Island.
“I visit the temple around 11 am everyday unless I do not feel well,” said Lee. “That’s my habit for over sixty years, which cannot be changed.”
She loves Green Island, not only because of the place itself, but also the relationship built among the community. As many neighbors live in the same building together, they can continue to keep in touch with each other. “It is nice that the government moved the Green Island residents into the same building after they had moved out.”
Moving out means it is really the beginning of her retired life. Without the grocery store, her life becomes very boring.
“My husband likes watching television at home every day, and I have nothing to do except going to the temple. That’s my life now,” Lee said.
In the future, she has a wish
No matter how much Lee misses the old days, it’s just part of the history. The end of one space brings another start. She cannot keep the old space; she only wishes her son can inherit the house when she passes away.
Lee said, “I am very worried that one day if I have gone to the heaven, my son won’t have a living space. It’s very ridiculous that I bought the apartment but I cannot pass it to my son.”
In fact, Lee said that the government regulates the right to the apartment use under the name of Lee and her husband only. She cannot control the disappearance of the old Green Island, so do the future ownership of her house, and the only thing she might do is to enjoy the present moment.