Local influencer Shirli Ling, who is 35, welcomed her first grandchild last year. Yes, you read that right. She became a grandma at 34.
Last week, Shirli, who’s known for playing the role of Chow Ai Lian in Jack Neo’s 2022 comedy Ah Girls Go Army, took to Instagram to share how she became a grandmother at such a young age.
“To be an ah ma at 34, you have to give birth to your child when you’re 17,” said Shirli, who has two sons and three daughters — aged 18, 17, 13, 10 and eight.
“While they’re growing up, you have to keep telling them: ‘Don’t be like mummy, don’t get married so young’ because the more you tell them not to, the more they’re going to do it,” she joked.
She said her son was “inspired” by her to become a parent at 17 before sharing a picture of her and her grandchild.
Jokes aside, Shirli emphasised that there are “good and bad” sides to being a young grandparent, and it all depends on how one manages it.
A few days later, Shirli posted another video to share her thoughts about her son becoming a dad at 17.
“Things that already happened can’t U-turn (sic)”, she stressed.
“Instead of scolding [him], I rather advise and give more support”, she wrote, adding that while one “cannot choose to have good or naughty children”, you can choose to guide them “to be better” every day.
Describing her son as someone who’s more “curious” and “playful”, Shirli said when her son first told her his girlfriend was pregnant, she wanted him to decide for himself if he wanted to keep the child.
“My thought was: ‘Do you want the baby?’, you need to make a choice. I can’t decide for you if you should have the child or tell you to abort it because this is your future, you guys have to face it yourselves,” she asserted.
“If I made this decision for you, and if you regret in the future, will you hate me?” Shirli went on to ask.
Shirli emphasised that she ever encouraged her kids to be young parents as she’s been through it.
“It wasn’t easy and there were many challenges,” she said. “But since it happened, I can only teach them how to face the music, how to decide [on what to do] and be responsible for their own actions.”
She also said that she couldn’t guarantee her son would not make the same mistake again even if he chose not to have the baby this time.
Shirli concluded that the most important thing was for her to be by her children’s side to “educate and guide” them whenever they need help.
“Even if they get married early, whether or not it lasts, remember to give your child a lot, a lot of love,” she said.