In Loving Memory.....

I woke up unusually early today (Saturday) to get ready for the carpet cleaner's visit. As usual, with my morning cuppa Joe on hand, I was casually checking emails and my heart sank on the very first email heading I saw............"at the time you read this email, your po-po (my maternal grandma) has gone home to be with the Lord"...........it hasn't been the usual Saturday since that moment.

Po-po is, was, 80+ years old....I believe she was 85(?!). Though I've been away from home for so long and she's hardly part of my everyday life now (what a thing to say, but it's true), I felt that part of me is lost. After all, she's my popo. I have fond childhood memories of her....how all of us gathered at her home during every festive season, the time she first suffered from heart problems and accepted Jesus as her personal saviour (which was a huge event since popo has always been a staunch Taoist-Buddhist-idol worshipper), how we bought a place close to her just so that mum can keep an eye on popo and how Al and I would get so excited during weekends when popo could sleep-over at our place (eventhough her home is just a stone's throw away)........

Now, my popo is gone forever. I've accepted the possibility of her demise quite a while ago, which was the reason why we made the trip home last year. However, despite the on-again-off-again criticality of her health the past year, I never thought this would be it. Looking back, I'm so thankful that we made that trip home to see her last year. I'm glad that I had the chance to personally deliver her X'Mas gift (a red sweater I bought her),


her Godiva chocolates (popo did have a sweet tooth!) and got to take her for a 9-course Chinese meal (with shark's fin soup and all. Still remember the grace she uttered before the meal "Lord, thank you for such wonderful opportunity to partake this treat of scrumptious shark's fin soup from my grand-daughter..." (it sounded really cute in Cantonese!).
I'm thankful that popo is now in a much better place where she no longer has to suffer, where there's no pain, no tears nor fears....she's with the Lord. She's at rest. Her soul and spirit are at peace.
Popo, I love you. I'll always remember you.