BFMP #5 ~ Still Missing Mom

February 10, 1976,  34 years ago to this day that mom passed on.  I was in studying in Year 5 that time and still vividly remember a few days prior to that day where I was brought home from school.  At that time I didn’t really see the severity of the situation although I knew that mom was already bedridden from her cancer (which I only found out about years later) and she was breathing with the assistance of an oxygen mask.  I was 11 at that time and at that age you do not really see the magnitude of the events that will eventually take place until it happens.

Mom was a housewife and as with all moms out there, a great cook.  I especially remember her prawn fritters which was fluffy and crunchy on the outside and a huge piece of prawn in the inside.  To be honest, recall as I might I cannot remember any of her other signature dishes but one thing for sure is that I never got hungry when she was around.

Mom also enjoyed her mahjong games with her circle of friends every other day and sometimes we would tag along when she goes for her mahjong sessions at her friend’s place or at the Rotary Club.  We would spend hours playing with the other kids while waiting for the mahjong sessions to end.  We had good fun but at times got bored waiting.      

I only noticed something was wrong with her health when she and dad started making trips to KL (we lived in Batu Pahat at that time).  It was for her medical checkups.  I think mom and dad made the conscious decision in not telling us what was happening as they knew we were too young to comprehend the severity of the situation.  Still they actually kept up a brave front for us.  I, for one was oblivious and thought all was hunky dory even though I knew deep down something was not right with her.

On that fateful day, it was somewhere during daytime.  In the house were many relatives and friends.  I was watching cartoons downstairs in the living room when we were summoned up to mom’s room.   There, she breathed her last breath and was gone forever.
I still remember what she last said to me – “Study hard”.

Where and what I am today is because of mom and dad.  I would have loved for her to see us all grow up and become what we are today.  I honestly think we grew up pretty decent and have had some success of our own.  Most importantly we grew up to be good people with a decent, honest jobs with families of our own.  She would have loved to see her grandchildren and maybe she is constantly keeping an eye on them.

We love you and miss you mom even after you have been gone for 34 years.