Memorial

In the memory of our grandfather, Wong Ah Tiam, who died on the morning of 2nd day of Chinese New Year (27 January 2009 @ 6am), we will miss you dearly and you will always be in our heart. Rest in peace, grandpa.

My grandfather who was diagnosed with diabetes long ago had his leg amputated beginning of the month. He was fighting a loosing game with the pain and finally gave up on Tuesday morning.

He was admitted into ICU last Sunday, the afternoon of reunion day. He was suffering from breathing difficulty and was undergoing dialysis when we visited him before we went for reunion dinner. He was shivering and it makes my heart ache. The next day, the hospital called informing us that his heart was weak and he was on machine support, in critical condition. Doctor said that he could only hold for 2 days maximum. On Tuesday early morning, around 5.40am, I woke up to expect the worst. I was correct, but there was still hope. My grandpa's heart beat was weakening and I knew it won't be long. I woke my family up, rushed to hospital but we were late 10 minutes. At first when I looked at the heart beat screen, I thought he was still alive because it was not in straight line. Then my sister said that grandpa passed away. I was shocked I couldn't react. I was sad of course but there's nothing more for me to do. All of us could only shed our tears because we have the funeral to prepare.

This year, a Chinese New Year to remember. Most people would think that a person died during CNY is not a good thing but it doesn't matter to us, to me at least. CNY or not, it's still the same. Just that we could not visit other people but still, I couldn't care less. We expect less people to attend the wake because it's still CNY. But nevertheless, it's not something to concern about.