LI NA, LI LIAN AND LI MEI

 Li Lian and Li Na

Li Mei, Li Na and Li Lian

I usually don't have much time to spend with my two sisters, Li Lian and Li Mei.  Li Lian lives in Singapore with her husband and three children. I am mostly in Sitiawan while Li Mei lives in Ipoh with her hubby but during the weekends, they go down to Kuala Lumpur to spend time with their two sons who are both studying at Taylor's College.
It is usually during holiday time that we get to meet up and spend some time together.  On the last week of 2010, Li Lian and her family were back in Ipoh and we took the opportunity to have dinner together.
Some of you might have noticed that Li Lian and I have western sounding names while Li Mei's name is very Chinese.  Well, both of them had to have the Li for their first names because of me.  Actually, I was named after an oceanliner.  You see, when my parents went for their honeymoon, they saw an oceanliner with the moniker, Selina.  My mum took a great liking to the name and told my dad that if her firstborn were a girl, she'd be named such.  True enough, their first born happened to be a girl.  My parents remembered the name.  However, my dad shortened the name to Li Na.  After that they had another girl and again my dad came up with a Christian sounding name for her.  When it came to their third daughter, my dad was set on naming her, Li Za but then my maternal grandma objected.  Instead, she was the one who named my sister.  Since, the youngest girl was such a beautiful baby, my granny named her Li Mei, which means Beautiful.