Present for My Parents

My dad is a retiree and my mum will join him in a few years time. I grew up in a home where my parents did their best to provide the best they could for me and my sister. It wasn't easy as both my parents had to work really hard to foot the expenses from the 3 devils (particularly me). I had no idea how difficult work was of course, till I started working myself.

Now I know why my dad wasn't very keen to go out shopping on weekend where he didn't have to work. I myself find it difficult for me to leave house on a weekend because the amount of rest I can get is just so rewarding for myself. Sorry dad, for not understanding this 15 years earlier.

My mum wasn't exactly very educated, but she did her best to try to provide for the family. She invented her own dish and perfected it, and then started a small business selling home made kaya, belacan and vegetarian pickle curry to nearby houses. She was proud of herself and I am as well. :)

Now, my dad is slightly relaxed as all his 3 children have now grown up and working (my younger sister joins the workforce officially on 1st July). Truth to be told, I didn't make things easy for him couple of years ago when I threw in my towel for my studies at UTP. But he still believed in me and supported my decision and I am grateful that he did.

So nowadays, my dad just sits at home watching television, going online to read news and play mahjong with my aunts in Ipoh. I gotta say it seems a little bored from what it seems, especially with the limited amount of programmes available in free television. My house never had Astro before because my dad didn't think it was necessary. I could tell his reasons now.

If I was my dad, I won't waste money on Astro too. Imagine working 8 hours a day and braving traffic to come home. Most of the time, you just want to rest or spend time with your loved ones, talking and not tuning out from your loved ones. Besides, we had a computer which was much more important in terms of giving us exposure in life. I have to agree with that. It's the same situation here. I won't subscribe Astro in my house where I'm staying in KL. How many hours a day would I be able to watch television a day? I dare say less than 5 hours a week.

My mum had always loved drama series. As she still takes pride in working these days, she hardly has time to catch them on time. Luckily, sometimes my aunt has DVD of those shows and lent them to my mum and she does enjoy watching them when she was free.

As I've just been appraised and the result turned positive, the first thing that came to my mind was to give something to my parents. I can't think of anything else but to subscribe Astro for them.


This is not an advertorial as I'm not paid to write about Astro. Though I'm not earning a lot, but I don't mind forking out a hundred bucks plus each month to ensure that my parents are entertained, informed and learn from the various content provided by Astro.

I am personally a fan of National Geographic and Discovery Channel but the frequency of those shows in free TV was just disappointing. My dad is fan of sports and news, but once again, dedicated shows like those just ain't sufficient on free TV. My mum will definitely enjoy the TVB series and not to mention learn a thing or two while watching more informative programmes.

A day after I submitted my application form, I called my dad to inform him of this. He sounded happy and grateful. Initially I subscribed only Basic + Movies + TVB. I asked if that's okay with him or he would like to have Sports Channels. He shared that he would be delighted if there are sports channels. His voice tone was so grateful that I can't help but to add in the extra channels despite it will go heavier on my monthly expenses.

Despite the fact, this contribution is very little to my parents, but I can't help but to somehow feel 'filial' for the very first time in my life. I hope mum and dad would enjoy Astro at home. I won't be able to tell anytime soon as a busy month is ahead of me.

*crosses finger*

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P.S. People keep telling me that my actions are just like the Astro commercial that they saw previously that urge people to subscribe Astro for their parents. The funny thing is I have not seen the ad before in my life, definitely not before my decision. I can't seem to find it anywhere. If it's available on Youtube, can someone point me at the right URL so I can share here as well?

Happy to be filial for once,
Robb