This made my day: Family gifts helper of 34 years with handmade memory quilt in Malaysia

Saying goodbye is never easy.

For one family in Malaysia, they decided to go all out to bid farewell and show their gratitude to their helper, who was returning to her home country after 34 years.

Esther Lau, a 36-year-old quiltmaker, took to TikTok last Saturday (July 1), to share the special moment in which she made a memory quilt from scratch for her helper, Alie.

Auntie Alie is affectionately called "Yaya", which in the Philippines refers to a nanny or domestic helper. 

Lau, a Singapore PR, captioned the video: "I finally gave my Yaya her quilt. She leaves in the middle of June, and buying her flight ticket was unexpectedly heavy and difficult to do."

Speaking to AsiaOne, Lau shared how Alie has been the permanent helper for their family since she was two years old, taking care of her and her two sisters while her parents were busy working. 

"I think filling in a role where she was desperately needed as a nanny, caretaker, household manager, and going above and beyond, helped concrete her in our lives. She was also the person we would confide in only because we knew she wouldn't judge us," said Lau. 

@quiltedbyderlyn I finally gave my Yaya her quilt. She leaves in the middle of June, and buying her flight ticket was unexpectedly heavy and difficult to do 💔 Goodbyes are tough. So I’m already checking out tickets to fly her to Singapore soon! 🇸🇬🇵🇭 #memoryquilt #partinggift #keepsake #farewell #goodbyes ♬ Menyentuh Hati

And when Alie decided to return home to the Philippines, the family knew they had to gift something that would be meaningful to her, and the memory quilt came about.

Lau said in the video: "She could bring back a part of us home with her to the Philippines."

Lau showed the entire process of how she lovingly made the memory quilt using her nieces' and nephews' clothes, with handwritten notes from every family member. 

One of the handwritten notes said: "Dear Aunty, thank you for taking good care of our family Lulu and Zekey. Our lives are better because of you."

Knowing that gifting something as sentimental to Alie would make her cry, Lau decided to give the quilt to her a week before the flight and even recorded the special moment. 

Upon receiving the gift, Alie held the quilt up to see all the personal notes written for her, which made her emotional.

Taking the time to see every piece of cloth and note with Alie, Lau said: "We reminisced together on the different pieces of clothing and fabric on the quilt."

Alie can be seen in the clip tightly hugging the precious gift given by the family. 

Lau ended the video with a heartfelt dedication for Alie: "Auntie, there are not enough words to say how grateful we are to have you in our lives and for everything you have done for us. This is not goodbye, but see you soon. Love, your three girls."

The video has since garnered 300,000 views and more than 30,000 likes, with netizens flooding the video's comment section to praise Lau and her family for the thoughtful gift and for treating Yaya well. 

Overwhelmed by the positive comments, Lau responded: "Floored and beyond touched by the shared sentiments on the farewell of our Alie."

Lau also shared in the comments that Alie sleeps with the memory quilt every night. 

When asked about their heartfelt gift, Lau told AsiaOne: "Auntie Alie is family, so she deserves to be reminded each and every day that she is exactly that to us no matter where she is.

"Out of gratitude, we have set aside money for her and will continue to do so, but I wanted to give her something tangible to show how much we love her and how worthy she is."

Lau shared that even though it was a tough decision for Alie to leave Malaysia permanently, she just turned 65, and because of health reasons has decided to retire.

When asked if they had a replacement after Alie, Lau shared that they have found someone and that she had been trained to take over Alie's role before she left for the Philippines.

It won't be too long before the family reunites with Alie again as Lau shared that she's planning a trip sometime this year to Alie's hometown in Dumaguete.

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ashwini.balan@asiaone.com

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