9 Ridiculous Things Our Singaporean Mothers Believed!

"You gave me a clock as a gift... you want me to die?!"

Growing up in Singapore, many of us may have heard ridiculous being told to us by our mothers or even grandmothers.

Have we now passed this down to our kids? Read on and I’m sure you’ll nod at a few of them.

Here are the 9 crazy things I’ve heard from my relatives and friends!

#1 Finishing your plate of rice

Mum’s logic: If you don’t finish that plate of rice, your future husband/wife will have a face full of pimples!

Truth: Not finishing that plate of rice is wasting food, but our mums probably wanted to get creative in trying to scare us by saying that instead of the boring ol’ “Eh don’t waste food leh!”

#2 Opening umbrella indoors

Mum’s logic: Boy ah! Don’t open the umbrella indoors! IT’S BAD LUCK!

Truth: It’s probably dangerous to open an umbrella indoors, especially if you have a small house. The sides of the umbrella are dangerous because they can cause hurt when they poke someone. Especially in the eye.

#3 Pointing at the moon

Mum’s logic: Hallo! Don’t point at the moon or else you’ll have a cut behind your ear tomorrow!

Truth: We’re not really sure how this logic formed, but it’s believed that pointing your fingers is considered as a rude gesture, and we’re not too sure if you’d wanna be rude to the only thing that’s lighting up the night sky.

#4 Taking pictures of someone while they’re sleeping

#4 Taking pictures of someone while they're sleeping

Mum’s logic: Don’t take a picture! Wait later their soul becomes trapped in the picture, then how? You give them back their soul ah?

Truth: It’s just really unglamorous.

#5 Walking under bamboo poles

Mum’s logic: You walk under there, you get bad luck then you know.

Truth: It’s dangerous if the bamboo poles fall on you, and you’re at risk of getting hurt.

#6 A new mother has to serve the confinement period for 30 days after giving birth

Mum’s logic: You have to stay for all 30 days, okay, or else you’ll get bad luck, migraines, rheumatism, and even an incurable infection.

Truth: Your body is weak. The confinement period is a period of time where a new mother bonds with her baby and spends the time resting.

#7 Giving a clock as a gift

Mum’s logic: Giving a clock as a gift is a superstitious belief of sending someone to their death, as the Chinese word for ‘death’ and ‘clock’ is similar.

You give me a clock? You want me to die?

Truth: Receiving a clock is just weird – much like receiving a pair of socks.

#8 Whistling at night

Mum’s logic: You whistle at night wait later all the dirty things come and follow you home.

Truth: Hearing someone whistle at night is just plain annoying. Almost as annoying as the revving of motorbikes late at night.

#9 Eye twitching

Mum’s logic: If your left eye twitches, it means that someone is gossiping about you behind your back. If your right eye twitches, it means that good luck will come your way.

My left eye is twitching. Eh who’s talking bad about me ah?

Truth: It has absolutely nothing to do with the above. It simply means that you’re in some desperate need of sleep!

What are some other crazy things that you have told your children? Share with us in the comments below. We would love to hear from you.

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Written by

Pavin Chopra

cultureBeliefs