What I wanted to say to you

Dear Grandma,

I will not say goodbye now, but I will say until we meet again, someday....

I was not by your bedside recently, but I was happy to be able to accompany you the weeks prior to your passing. I saw you smile for the first time without your dentures and we watched your little persimmon tree bloomed a thousand flowers.

But we also shared your pain and anquish, pain which cuts deep like the edge of a waterfall.

But now that pain is no more. There is no more weight to your heart. Let your spirit soar high to the misty heavens above.
And let the memory of you be forever enshrined in the temples of our hearts....
Especially the memory of you and me on our daily shopping trips to the market on an old rickety trishaw during my childhood days. You always carried me on your shoulders, no matter how tired you were. And while you carried me, you sang your traditional village songs from China.

I will miss you forever, grandma. I hope you are happy, wherever you are. And say hello to Uncle La La for me.

Your granddaughter.
I would like to thank the palliative care unit of the Hospice Malaysia for their personal care and immaculate attention, while attending to my grandma, all without a single monetary charge. Especially thanks to Sharon Victoria Dabi and Dr Lim Zee Nee for their time and patience. Also thanks to Grace and Rowena for those many sleepless nights.
Fore more about the palliative care unit of the Malaysian Hospice and donations please go to their website at: http://www.hospismalaysia.org/

No more stories to tell

Yasmin Ahmad (1958 - July 2009)

Yasmin Ahmad, award-winning film director (Cannes, Berlin and Tokyo film festivals) and mentor to all budding film-makers also passed away on July 25th at a young age of 51. She has left a legacy of film-making which tells of overcoming life's day-to-day difficulties through the cultivation of love and solidarity across races and religions. Her work of art will remain an inspiration to all, especially to me. Her mother, Mak Inom, was my language and literature teacher at secondary school. Like her mother, Yasmin Ahmad always had a story to tell, translated into the wide screen. I offer my heartfelt condolonces to her parents, her husband and all her friends and loved ones.