43. After Mother's Death

We were afraid that father would succumb to loneliness after mother had passed away. However, he was a very patient man and accepted that "these things just happened without reason". He would often say: "It is all fated." He was a very soft-spoken and pleasant man who never raised his voice to anyone. He was also very tolerant and considerate. Even when he was angry, he kept the frustrations to himself, and he seldom complain.

After mother's death, father moved in with brother Chew Tai at 172, Lorong 18, Taman Sri Kota, Taiping. However, when brother Chew Tai decided to sell his house and move to his in-law's house in Tupai, father moved in with me at Taman Lake View.

He was a very simple man with very simple needs. In the mornings, he would sit in the porch, listen to the birds sing, read the Chinese newspaper, and watch the neighbours go by. He preferred home cooked dishes. Three meals a day was his standard fare, and no supper. He usually eat one bowl of rice, sometimes a little more if he was hungry, and he never over-eat. He used to say: "eating to three-quarter full is better than a full tummy". In the evenings, he would watch some TV programmes, and his favourites were documentaries, and go to bed around 10.30 p.m.