26101607
A number I'll never forget.

4:07 pm, 26th October 2008

Grandpa left us.
At first during lunch, we were contacted by uncle that he had vomited large volumes of blood.
We rushed down immediately and saw the doctor and nurses working on him.

By then, I was prepared for the worse.

Soon after, as we sat by his bedside, he took deep breaths with a panting sort of way.
But at around four plus, his pants became further apart. soon his chest didn't even move.
We rang the bell for the nurse to come, but they took their own sweet time.
What was I supposed to say? "Erm can you come and check the patient of Room 26, Bed 9? I think he's not breathing." ?
Well that was what I said.
The next we saw of him, I will never forget.
His dentures, or rather the absence of it, made his lower lip cave inward. I'd prepare myself for how I'd react when he was gone, but in all my imagination I'd forgotten to imagine him minus the breathing part.

When one is seen sleeping, we do not freak out because we see his chest rising and falling at a steady pace and our subconcious settles into that rhythm. But when we don't see the chest moving, it's the worst nightmare.

I saw his eyelids start to droop. Funny. He never wanted to close them for the past half hour. Something was wrong. The next thing I knew, his breathing became slower and slower. Finally, though I went off to get the nurse, I knew what happened - the much awaited breaths never came.

~~Eulogy~~

4:07 pm ,26th October 2008

Khor Chew Koh

Age 72

Left us to be with the God

He was a fighter, a hero to the end. When all had lost hope, he didn't.

Only that he knew what was coming.

Being the fighter he was, Grandpa was already prepared for it.

In his final hours, he may have struggled against the doctors, but ultimately he fought on with his life.

He was a teacher; a fighter; a hero.

Even when he was leaving, he taught me a lesson.

I swear by my blood to value my life.

The world may have lost a hero, but today

Others shall arise.

Grandpa left me an important task.

He was the head of the family.

He kept the family together throughout his final hours.

At his deathbed, I was there.

I saw the fighting spirit in his eyes;

How he fought to kept them open, staring determinedly at the ceiling.

I knew he was leaving us because his eyelids started to droop.

I may not have known him much, but what I know, is that

On this day, Grandpa did not give up the fight.

He won it.

He won the fight that was in his heart, whether or not to leave us.

He won the fight, which claimed to engulf his body in pain.

It wasn't a fight.

It was merely a decision.

Grandpa never, for a single moment, stopped fighting.

He is the perfect model of a teacher and fighter.

He died a prepared man.

He lived a fulfilling life.

He never lost his goal in life.

Death is but a portal to a whole new beginning.

Even then, when his soul has left us, his spirit will always linger around.

He has watched over us for decades.

Now it is time for him to go.

Rest in peace, Grandpa.

You will always be my dearest hero.

~ The End ~

Well, I think this marks an end to a chapter in all our lives.

A chapter of a book that does not end here.

The Book of Life will never be completed, but constantly updated.

Oh and the funeral is held at Everton Park, Neil road. At the gathering place.

It lasts for three days and on Thursday, he will be cremated at Mandai Columbarium.

On a side note, to all readers, I say this with all solemnity.

Whoever you are, whereever you are, no matter how you may go,

Just keep in your mind that even when no one else may grief for you, I will.

Dear friends, believe me. In the face of death, such a gentle reminder that someone will cry for you is extremely important.

It is true. Unexplainable yet true.

~ Sign Off ~

Grandpa, you will always be in my heart.

I love you. Always. Rest In Peace.