Life in all it’s beauty will one day fade
I’m so sorry for the long absence, but I’ve been playing catch-up with life lately. This post was left as a Draft for quite sometime and I finally have the time to finalize and publish it.
This is my personal tribute to Aunt Sue, or affectionately known as Er Ee (2nd aunt). I met with my wife’s family last year in Penang. Most of her family members speak the Hokkien dialect and as such I have some communication issues. Er Ee and Xiao Ee (smallest aunt) are the only person I converse with in English. When we make our trip down to Penang, we stay at Er Ee’s place.
I would say my relationship with wifey’s family really grew stronger when her grandma passed away about 6 months ago. Fast forward 6 months and another tragedy struck her family. Er Ee suffered from a stroke during her training course here in KL. The doctors said it was very fortunate, that she was in a hospital when it happened. She was admitted into the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and was deemed critical. The ironic bit, Er Ee was also an ICU nurse in Penang. In the span of 3 days, she underwent 3 operations. One to stop the bleeding, one to relieve the pressure in the brain cavity and the final one to allow easier breathing (tracheotomy).
Last Friday, 17 Aug 07 at 1.33PM, Er Ee left this mortal world behind peacefully. The doctors actually met with the family that morning, letting us know to be prepared as her situation was not good. In the middle of our lunch, we got a call from the hospital. Her condition had taken a turn for the worse. For once, I was given the green light to let my inner Schumacher speed demon out. Fortunately, I managed to bring the family to the hospital in one piece and in time for the final goodbye. By the time I parked and raced up to the ICU, she breathed her last breath.
We had to get everything done fast as the family wanted to send her body back to Penang for the last rites and cremation. Wife and I went home to pack and make the long drive down to Penang. I’m now waiting for the traffic summonses I may have chalked up during that journey up North, as we arrived about 30 minutes away from the ambulance, which left hours earlier. As usual, the trustee Atos took the flogging like a champ.
It was deja vu. The funeral parlour was at the same venue as wifey’s grandma. Only 3 blocks away. Many of her colleagues turned up for the service and many left with teary eyes. I guess it really all boils down to that very moment. The testament to how well you’ve lived your life and how many lives have your own touched. It was heart warming to see so many people there.
Fast forward to this weekend. We flew back for prayers courtesy of AirAsia (now everyone can fly). It’s actually much cheaper to fly, if you keep in mind the summonses you may get on the roadtrip. Again I had the sense of deja vu as Er Ee’s ashes were placed right next to wifey’s Grandma. She would have loved this. She was very close with her mom during her life here and now they will remain close in the spiritual world. Wife and I know she is around and looking out for all of us. May her soul rest in peace.
