In Memory of Grandpa

Kong-kong during his younger days

Received a text message from Dad sometime last night while I was still asleep. I also got a voicemail left by Aunty Bee around the same time. Woke up to find a text message and voice message, I knew something had to have happened. I found out that Grandpa passed away in the afternoon of February 21, Tuesday Malaysian Time at 97 years old. Malaysian time is actually ahead of the US Central time, which is where I'm located, therefore them calling me in the middle of Tuesday morning....I know it's confusing but that's what I have to live with whenever I communicate with my family who are half the world away. They are constantly living 1/2 a day ahead of me, it's night here when it's day there, it's today here when it's tomorrow there; so this makes it all quite confusing sometimes.

I found out that Grandpa would like to be cremated and have his ashes scattered into the seas surrounding Penang Island. It will probably remain along the Straits of Malacca for a while and then eventually be carried to the Indian Ocean or the South China Sea depending on how the ocean current flows. I am surprised that this is what Grandpa, the free-sprited man I suppose, wanted because traditionally people from his generation are either buried in a family cemetery or cremated and then stored in a temple so that future generations can pay their respects. In a way, I can see how this can be quite serene andnot that bad of an idea.

I am just a little dissappointed that I will not be able to attend his funeral. It seems that ever since I've started living in the US, I have missed out on a lot of the major family functions. First was of my eldest brother's wedding. Then there was this big 90th birthday celebration for Grandpa where Aunties, Uncles and cousins from all over the globe attended.

In honour of all people closest to me who have passed on, I have created an account at Genebase to somehow link all my relatives together in a one big family tree. I will try to recruit as many of them as possible. Hopefully the response will be good. Wish me luck...

Kong-kong shortly before his passing