Just a few updates...... my paternal grandfather just passed away peacefully on 25th August.... the funeral will be from 25th to 28th and he'll be cremated on 29th.......

i wasn't very close to him.... but when the monks chanted the sutras i felt an overwhelming sense of sadness..... maybe it's the sad lamenting tone the monks used... i dont know.....or maybe it's cos we had to go around the coffin, knowing that your granddad is there, under that cover doesn't make it any better....

anyway, it's not been very hectic so far.... cos we're quite lucky to have a few maids around to help things out...... and i've been sick since yesterday... the same old usual ailments, flu, cough, fever.... and bones aching.... the fever thing is really very bad.... makes my head throb like mad......

my company was very very kind to send a flower wreath to the wake..... i was very touched.... the funeral's supposed to be 5 days, and i only have 3 days of compassionate leave (i took the last 3 days), but the boss just let me off very early this morning so that i can go back and rest and help out at the wake.... was really touched by his gesture.... i dont even need to take any extra leave or any thing, he asked me to just leave....... and he even asked around the company for the "bai jing".....

we saw a black butterfly directly on the ceiling on top of the coffin when the chanting started.... we wondered if it was granddad.... and the butterfly disappeared when the chanting stopped..... i was actually quite shocked.... i've heard many stories about the dead turning into black butterflies..... and appearing at funerals...... cos nowadays u dont normally see butterflies flying around do you? and it actually was on the ceiling for a very very long time directly on top of the coffin until the chanting stopped.....

i fondly remember my grandfather as a fish lover....... he loves eating fish..... especially steamed ones.... and dipping them into chilli and soya sauce.... and producing sounds of satisfaction as he chews on....... when i was young, i would sit beside him and eat fish with him..... he'd take out all the fish bones for me and prepare a soya sauce without chilli....... and asked me to dip it in..... whenever i'm around, he'll always ask me to sit beside him..... i remember him sitting on his favourite rocking chair..... it was really his favourite....he'd sit there all day and rocked and watch tv.... his favourite past time was watching the stock market on the teletext......he plays the stock market and never got burnt...... he always asked me to push his rocking chiar....... and often asked me to sit on his lap on the rocking chair when i was young.......

sad to say, that was all the memories i had of him..... we grew more and more distant from each other when i grew older....... i'd only go his house once a year, or maybe twice a year....... but i still love him as my grand dad....... i really respect him alot...... he was the only one in my dad's family who does not show biasness against girls....... he wasn't like my aunts and uncles who were really bias towards my older brother..... i remember clearly once they accused me of stealing my grandmother's $500 when i was primary 2.... primary 2 leh..... do you know how traumatised i was? when i was in primary 2 the only big bucks i recognised was $5... i think $5 is more than $500.... at least it's more useful to me.... in the end they realised they misplaced the money....... ended up accused me for nothing...... all the while my grandfather was the only one who didn't say anything, didn't accuse me and just kept quiet...... i knew he didn't think it was me......

阿公，祝您一路好走。。。原您已经到了极乐世界。。。我们会永远想念您。。。