The bride and the groom having the first dance.
IT was no issue at all for Lawas-born Alice Daring to undergo a 25-hour journey from Miri to Austin, Texas in the US, to attend the wedding of her grandson Jonathan Yee and his bride Bridget MacAllister.
Such a flight trip, even with stopovers in Kuala Lumpur and Amsterdam, was already gruelling enough for any young adult, but for the 77-year-old grandmother, it was more than just a grand family occasion.
It was the wish of her late husband, Nelson Janting, for their first grandchild to have an Iban-Lun Bawang wedding.
From Brunei to USA
Jonathan was born in Kuala Lumpur 28 years ago, around the time when his father Hon Yee was furthering his studies in Colorado, USA.
After that, Jonathan and his mother Louisa Janting went to stay in Brunei with his maternal grandparents, who were teaching there at the time.
“We love him so much; being our first grandchild, I think most people would understand that,” Alice told thesundaypost when met in Miri recently.
“When Jonathan and his mother left for the US, we also tagged along – we stayed there for a few months to help them adjust to the new environment.”
Alice smiling at the wedding photographer.
Jonathan, his three brothers and one sister were all born in the US. After their father graduated, he worked in Colorado for a while before relocating his family to Austin, where they have been living in for the last 23 years.
Louisa was a stay-at-home mum and she home-schooled her children.
Hon, a science graduate, worked for a production company at first but gradually, he set up his own business and now, his sons are working for him.
Jonathan presenting the traditional gifts, made by Alice, to his mother-in-law.
Given with love
Alice was accompanied by her other daughters, Sophia (eldest) and Carol (youngest), to the Texas wedding, which took place in Round Rock in March this year.
It was a very special event for the grandmother, in that she herself tailored five pieces of ‘Baju Burong’ (traditional vests for Iban men) for her four grandsons and son-in-law.
She said while making the vests, she kept thinking about her late husband.
“My dear Nelson really loved Jonathan – he really could not bear to part with him when Louisa and her baby had to move to the US.
“He really wanted to raise the baby himself.
“With each stitch on each vest, I felt as if my husband’s spirit was with me in every step.
“Even throughout the trip to Texas, it felt like he was travelling with us too,” she said, adding that she could have not been more proud in seeing all the Yee men wear the ‘Baju Burong’ during the wedding.
Nonetheless, Alice certainly did not forget Bridget. The bride, who has Scottish, Chinese and Philippine lineage, received an exquisite Lun Bawang beaded cap and a belt from her grandmother-in-law.
For her daughters and granddaughter (Jonathan’s sister), Alice gave them a beaded cap each, while for Bridget’s mother, she gifted her a special sun hat called ‘rong’ and a basket called the ‘tayen’.
For the father of the bride, Alice presented to him the traditional Lun Bawang harvester’s backpack called the ‘keluipit’ – a token of prosperity, generosity and loving kindness for the American family.
“I filled ‘keluipit’ with a kilogramme of Lun Bawang rice and a ‘Pua Kumbu’ (traditional Iban woven fabric) big enough to be used as a tablecloth, measuring six-by-eight feet,” said Alice.
(From right) Alice accompanying Jonathan in presenting the ‘keluipit’ to his father-in-law.
The wedding’s emcee explained the significance of the gifts to the guests, who were clearly mesmerised by the uniqueness of each item that they had never seen before.
A pastor from the church in Yee’s neighbourhood officiated at the wedding, which celebrated not only the union of Jonathan and Bridget, but also the Yees and the MacAllisters, as well as the diverse communities represented by the two families.
Bridget, seen wearing the special Lun Bawang beads belt made by Alice, dancing with her father.
Sarawakian family’s background
Alice’s husband Nelson passed away two years ago in Miri.
He was from the first batch of educators graduated from Batu Lintang Teachers Training College in Kuching back in the 1950s.
He was first posted to Long Tuma, a remote village nestled beneath the high mountains of Trusan in Northern Sarawak.
Being placed in those parts during those early days, it was as good as him being cut off from his family in Betong, in the southern part of Sarawak.
Even making a phone call was a real challenge back in the late 1950s – Nelson would have to walk one whole day to Lawas if he wanted to talk to his mother in Betong.
However, it was also where he met and fell in love with a colleague, a pretty Lun Bawang named Alice.
The two got married and were living a blissful life, but Nelson felt that he must work harder to be a better provider for his family. So in 1961, he decided to leave for Brunei, where he was engaged by the St Andrew’s School in Bandar Seri Begawan.
It was during this time when his proficiency in the Iban and English languages was recognised and soon, he was called to join Radio Brunei to become its Iban and English news reader.
At the same time, he was officially made a court interpreter, and quite often, he would be given official leave from school due to being ‘On His Majesty’s Service’ in the court of Brunei.
Nelson and Alice lived in Brunei until his retirement in 2009, when they moved back to Miri.
Alice was among the first Lun Bawang girls to receive education at the Tanjong Lobang School in Miri. Hailing from Long Semadoh, she was recruited by a then-officer from the Education Department who, at the time, had been scouting for bright ‘ulu’ (rural) boys and girls to join the first government school in the Fourth Division (Miri).
Alice entered Form 1 after doing well in her Common Entrance Examination. From Long Semadoh, she and her father had to walk to Lawas where she took a boat bound for Limbang and then Brunei, where she would then boarded a bus to Miri.
“It was quite a daunting journey, but I just gritted my teeth and went through with it because I really, really wanted to learn,” she said.
After finishing her Form 5 in Tanjong Lobang School, Alice took up temporary teaching in Long Tuma.
“We’re a very good team. Our relocation to Brunei was a mutual decision, and we never regretted it.”
(From right) Jonathan, his grandmother Alice and their family members looking resplendent in their attire, combining Iban and Lun Bawang traditional elements.
No regrets
Louisa, Alice’s second daughter, was educated in Brunei, later in Singapore and then, Australia where she met Hon, a Chinese from the Fiji Islands, at a church there.
Hon, at the time, was studying for his first degree programme in Adelaide.
The two tied the knot soon after.
As stated earlier, the Yees home-schooled all their children.
In her words, Louisa said they never regretted giving this kind of education to their children.
“Home is the best place to educate children. Our children coped well with the home-school courses and passed all the required public as well as private examinations.”
Photo from the family album shows Nelson and Alice with their young daughters, during their days in Lawas. Seen from right are Louisa, Sophia and Carol.
Alice added: “We mothers know our children well. In our family, Louisa and I have established two generations of teachers. And I’m just happy that my grandchildren are doing well in the US.”
Hon is currently the owner of an electronic manufacturing company based in Round Rock, Austin, where Jonathan and his brothers work.
Reminiscing the Texas wedding, Alice said she was really happy that everything went well.
“Thank God, we’re able to travel safely after the pandemic.
“I’m just thankful to God for He has given me the joy of witnessing the wedding of my grandson Jonathan and his bride Bridget.
“I’m also thankful that I was able to share with our American in-laws a glimpse into the traditions of the Ibans and the Lun Bawangs of Sarawak.
“I’m very sure that Nelson was with us in spirit as we honoured his Iban heritage at the wedding,” said Alice with a smile.