LOS TEROPONG

I say man, can't find anything interesting enough to write about from the papers. Hmmm ... Yesterday (Monday, 23 May), went back to Kepala Batas to visit my 83 year old father. He suffered a mild stroke about 5 years ago, and recovered pretty well ... as well as a person recovering from stroke, of course. He was doing ok, even prayed standing up for the first half, and sitting down for the remainder. He still walked to his wheel chair as part of the exercise and downed a cocktail of medication to sustain his health.

He has always been an active person, being a former inspector in the Drainage and Irrigation Department (DID as it was known before), a vocation that required a lot of walking inspecting the canals and irrigation of paddy fields. Even the day before his stroke, he was still cutting grass with that motorised contraption on his back. He has never been sick all his life with the only one-time admittance to hospital was because of itchy fingers that required some attention.

Then, naturally he got tired very easily, spend more time on the wheelchair and as a natural progression too, the joints got stiffer and for almost a year ago he has been in bed all the time, sitting up once in a while to be fed, have his smoke and his favourite canned drink. But his memory is first rate. He can remember evrything, and I mean everything, everyone and every joke ever told to us. I may have inherited some of his sarchastic nature of joke telling although I assure you my younger brother has more. Btw, my younger brother is a Specilaist in Damansara Medical.

During the long Labour Day break we all decided to have a get together and a family BBQ in Kepala Batas and re-celebrate his birthday (was on April 7th) with cakes and all. We even hauled him out in his wheelchair to the dining table where we assisted with the candle-blowing.

Yesterday, he looked totally different. He has not eaten well in the last two days, not spoken much but just remained very quiet and looked absolutely frail. All we could do was sit on the floor beside him, and hold his hand. No words were necessary. A few verses were read for him and in our hearts, our prayers for the best for him.

Made me think too that one day, I too will be in that position. The finality, the lone journey ... how nothing around you matter anymore, how getting up, getting cleaned, getting fed and just staying alive (more of a conjecture) is a challenge. Made my hair stand on ends. We are very familiar with the fact that all that live will one day die, but it does not make it any easier when you put yourself in that position. It is NOT the end of the story you know. There is the hereafter ..... and it is not so far away either after one has left the world as we know it ... but I won't go into that. Such is life ...