This publication came to me, truly with a pleasant surprise when I was just merely searching for the word "Kasut Manek" (directly translated as "Shoe Beads"). To justify my action on the search was mainly because my aunt used to make one of these shoes as side income or pass time before she became a grandmother.
Here's a little background on why Kasut Manek sparks my interest. My mother was born in a small state called Malacca, a historical state where birth of Malaya (now Malaysia) starts. Subsequently, the origins of where the Baba-Nyonya (aka Peranakan) community came about is actually where my mom and her siblings grew up. Hence, the crafting of these Manek shoes are very much a reminiscence of laughter and snacks between the 2 sisters whilst exchanging ideas on the kind of designs they agreed to sew.
What Cavell did cleverly in this short and powerful depiction on the art of making a "Kasut Manek" has it's sentimental values. His worry was whether such iconic traits (within the South East Asian region) will be long gone if legacies are not brought forward in today's technological advancements. Then again, he cared enough by capturing the essence of the Peranakan culture, in which he purposefully includes every aspects of ethnic origins, religions and politics.
For starters, Cavell brilliantly journeyed his audience on a detailed level craftsmanship on the making of these shoes. Nevertheless, he has made an extra effort by interviewing Mr Sng's journey in crafting something so tastefully beautiful but also by carrying on the colours of Peranakan culture. Minimal mistakes on a typo error with the term "Dondang Sayang" could very much be an auto-correct from an Office Application, the rest was very well thought-out with so much soul into it.
To me, would anyone care enough to think that such traits would still be carry on? Never in a million years would I find a treasure that was written, researched and depicted with so much heart and effort. Flavorful as this might sound, I would suggest readers to read it off with the link that I will be providing at the end of my review.
In conclusion, if I ever got a chance to appreciate this piece of treasure, I definitely would! The idea of archiving an article by bringing back our forefather's culture back to life is a million to none (over the internet). Then again, kudos to Cavell whom he has done an amazing job by allowing me to reminisce such a beautiful memory that even the scent of these beads are close to my nostrils than ever before!
Link: https://issuu.com/cavelllimzigui/docs/demise
