Old Age

Time flies. It seems only yesterday when the cousins are playing one of the role playing games at the courtyard of ASL. I could still see ah gong chasing us with his famous belt. There was also the scene where ah dou slipping into the tiny alley in between the storeroom and the next house before it was removed during the land issue. I remembered playing the role of a bus conductor or taxi driver using the swing as the vehicle. Though the swing is still standing where it was standing more than 20 years ago, the feeling is somewhat different now. The feeling of nostagia flooded my senses, everytime I think about the swing. It had been around throughout my lifetime. I remembered it was my first birthday gift. *Time to snap out of this mode before you guys complain again...:Þ*

Just a few days ago, I received a sms at 1250am from long ge. It read" First aunt was admitted to hospital in the evening. She fainted. She is ok now. You can go and see her tom at Room 46, Ward XX, BedXX at SGH." She has a history of diabetic and high blood pressure. The last time I saw her was a month ago at Ah Po's 100 days ritual. She was seen popping in pills from a plastic bag filled with different types of medicines. To me, she was cheerful and always smiling in the face of hardships. No matter how tough life can be, she was always taking it easy. A soft hearted woman, who is always forgiving and putting other people's interest on top of hers. Think I need not elaborate on her deeds, we all know her well enough.

So the next day, long ge and I went to see her. As we entered the ward, we spotted her at the corner of the room next to the windows. She was sitting with her back facing us. She seem to be tearing. I would see the sadness in her face. There were tears in her eyes and cheek. It was a sight I never seen except during ah po's funeral. When she saw us, she was back to her old self. She gave us an short account of what's happening. It started last week, when she went to the polyclinic. A young doctor attended to her and prescribed her a new medicine to stabilise her sugar level in her body. When she went to the pharmacy, the pharmacist told her that the new medicine was a stronger dose than the medicine previously prescribed to her. She went back to consult the doctor. The doctor merely dismissed her and said that the new medicine was better for her after measuring her sugar level. The first day when she tried the medicine, she experienced dizziness. She had the same feelings for the next few days. She vomitted on one of the days. She thought she would feel better after she had vomitted. So she went to work. While at the workplace, she took the medicine again. Immediately, she experienced dizziness again and the leg went weak. She went home immediately. Later that evening, third aunt went to see her and she was rushed to the hospital. She couldn't recall what happen after that. She only remembered she was rushed into a vehicle. For a while, she thought she was going to the airport. She repeated the same sequence at least twice.

While long ge was chit chating with her, I was looking at her. At certain angle, she looked like ah po. She looked like third aunt. The way she stared at things, when not talking, looked like my father. Not surprisely, they were siblings. Although there are conflicts at time, but just seeing how they care and help each other whenever one are in trouble, certainly warms the heart. She also indicated her intention to retire soon. I can see that she is very tired. Having worked all her life, she has devoted her time to her family and her siblings' . It is time for her to enjoy her remaining life. I hope she will be discharged today and in time for CNY.