The Lord Calls (7)

Mike picked a closed name tag from the Christmas giving tree in the church foyer on the 9 December 2019.   After clearing with the Bishopric, he gave me the tag, now revealed with the name of Joan Murray.   We have no idea who she was.

Heavenly Father must have wanted me to fellowship with her.   Found out she was in her early 80's and living alone.  I was excited to learn that she lived in the same neighborhood because that would allow me to visit her easily.    I brought some cookies and knocked on her door on the 15 December 2019.    It was my first visit to her.   I am glad that I was able to visit with her as well in the next 5 months or so.

I wasn't in the area during the week when Sister Murray passed away on the 26 September 2019.   However, I am glad I was able to attend her funeral on the 1 October.

Rest in peace, Sister Murray.  It has been a pleasure knowing you.  We have fun visiting.

The Lord Calls (6)

May 2020

Staying at home and trying to keep myself occupied, during the COVID-19 pandemic, has led me to searching out friends, whom I have not seen for years.  There is joy when you find and reconnect.   I am saddened when I learnt that they have passed away.   I am more saddened if  it happened just a week or two before I found them.   If only I had call her number earlier.

Thanks to the restored gospel of Jesus Christ, I am comforted that my friends have gone to the spiritual world and there is the hope of meeting again in the next world.    I have no pictures of the following friends, but they will not be forgotten.

Nancy Vera Pennington Phelps and I had spoken and messaged each other in April 2019.   We lived in different states.  We had planned to meet, during a visit to her city, but due to unforeseen circumstances, the visit was cancelled. Neither of us made contact after that.  We were both busy with our own lives.   The desire to call her came this year.    I think I called her number around the 23-May-2020.    Her son answered her phone.    On the 27-May-2020, I learnt from her son that Sister Phelps had passed away on the 14-May-2020.

I wished we had met last year.   I wished I had called her between April 2019 and May 2020.

Sister Phelps was once my Visiting (Ministering) Sister.   She had been there when I needed help.   She helped me clean the house the morning I was moving to another city.   And the last friend to see me off from my home.

Sister Martha Louise Johnson was my angel.   Because I didn't have my own vehicle, she had volunteered to take me to work and back from work, even when it was like almost midnight at the end of my shift.  She also volunteered to take me to my medical appointments.   I learnt of her passing (24-March-2019) when I reconnected to another Sister on the 24-May-2020).

Shirley Brown was a sweet little lady whom I had the pleasure to work with, for 18 months.   She was always good to me.    She gave me some money as a parting gift when I left the company and moved to another state.   She told me I am welcome to stay with her if I have no place to go.    It is very humbling to hear that kind of gesture and love from people.   I only knew of her passing on the 12-January-2017 through another colleague of ours.

The Lord Calls (5)

2 days ago, while looking at old pictures, going down the memory lane and reminiscing, my thoughts went to a friendly young man, who I am thankful for.   If it was not for this young friendly gentleman-photographer, I wouldn't have those old pictures.  I knew he worked for a newspaper.   That was in 1971 when I was in Form V.   We never met after that.

I could even remember his name, Alfred Lee.    After 48 years of not being in contact, I wanted to find him and thank him again for the pictures.   It must be that I am older now and have more time to reflect on the past.   So I looked him up on the worldwide popular social network, Facebook.   I found  Alfred Ak Lee.    This Facebook guy is fatter and having not seen him for 48 years, I was not sure he is the Alfred Lee of 1971.   However Alfred Ak Lee is a photographer and there was a picture of him when he was younger that looks like Alfred Lee of 1971.    So I requested friendship.  I wrote him a private message asking him if he was the Alfred Lee of 1971.   2 days, no reply and I wonder.   His last public posting was in May 2018.  His profile pictures is of a photographer and so it is odd that he is not posting any pictures since May 2018.

I don't know why I continue to search for him.   I read an article from PressReader.com of a Alfred Lee that died of cancer on the 26 July 2018.   And I saw a resemblance of the Alfred Lee of 1971 in the picture that they posted in the article.   I felt that this is the Alfred Lee that I was looking for because of what they wrote about him.

However, I didn't want to take it for granted that the Alfred Lee who passed away is the Alfred Lee of 1971.    So I messaged the only FB mutual friend of Alfred Ak Lee and myself, to check if Alfred Ak Lee had passed away.   Our mutual friend didn't know.   That is odd.   I guess sometimes there are FB friends that we hardly keep up with, like in this case.

I wonder who I could ask.   I asked a former classmate, whom I thought would know.   Nope.    A former schoolmate came into my mind.   He had worked as a Municipal Counselor so he definitely would know.    And yes, bingo, he confirmed that the Alfred Lee of 1971, was the Alfred Lee that had died last year.  I didn't know his full name (Alfred Lee Kim Lung) until I read the article of his passing.

I am sorry, Alfred Lee, that I was too late in thanking you again for taking pictures of some of our school activities.   I know I have thank you in 1971 but I felt like thanking you again.

The Lord Calls (4)

I knew Agatha Wong when we worked together at the Miri/Bintulu Project in 1973-74.   Sweet lady.   She operated a stall at the Tamu Muhibbah before she ventured into tailoring business.   I would take my clothes to her when I needed help with some sewing work.

13-July-2009

Time passed and it was only around Chinese New Year 2019 when I wondered why she didn't reply my messages.   Found out that she had passed away on Christmas Day 2018, from colon cancer.   Last I saw her was in 21 April 2016.   Another friend gone.   She will be missed.

Last picture with Agatha Wong.  18-September-2014.

The Lord Calls (3)

I am writing "The Lord Calls (3)" being the 3rd of the same subject, some of the many friends, that had gone over the veil.   I missed them.

Betty Leong Pick Yun (I am not sure I spelled "Pick" correctly.  We went to the same Shorthand-Typist class in 1972.   She was my best friend then.   After graduating, we went on our respective lives and lived in separate cities.  We met and visited each other, maybe a few times.   We both got married, have children.   She was my bridesmaid.     So busy that we lose touch with each other.    Sometime in 1988, I was contacted by a family of hers, relaying me the news that she had passed, leaving behind a husband and a daughter.   She had died of pneumonia.  I probably have other pictures taken with her, apart from our class picture, but they were not in digital form.

27 August 2020.  Found this piece of congratulations note from Betty.  Brings back memory of our close friendship.   I really miss her.

Congratulation note from Betty Leong

Known Dawn Frances William since 1999, through the church.   She has gone over the veil, on the 10 October 2013.  I got the sad news from her daughter, via the Facebook Messenger.

Visited Doris Barbara Greene for the very first time on 18 December 2013, at her  home.   Thanks to our church's Visiting Teacher program, we became friends.   She sewed the following pillow, and gave it to us on the 14 April 2014.

Interestingly, I met Doris's mother, Alicia Clayton-Clavie'  at my work place.   And then, interestingly, I was assigned as her Visiting Teacher.    My companion and I visited her at her home, for the very first time, on the 26 February 2015.   Sister Greene texted me, on the 18 April 2017, that her mother had passed away on the 26 March 2017.   Sister Clayton never get to see the Easter card that I snail mailed to her on the 24 March 2017.

In the period prior to our reallocation in August 2015, I have enjoyed the friendship that I had with this beautiful mother and daughter.   I only learnt, early this year, from my Visiting Teaching companion, after continual unanswered phone calls and messages to Sister Greene, that she had passed away on the 21 July 2017, 4 months after her mother, Sister Clayton, had passed.   Miss and love you all.

The Lord Calls (2)

2000 - December 2013

Met Christina Tilisit Jendili mid-2000, when we were both attending the church meetings at a rented house in Likas, Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.    And we had been friends since.   When I moved back to Miri, Sarawak, in February 2005, we had kept in touch, through sms and email since it was cheaper than talking on the phones.    We had supported each other morally and emotionally, during our respective troubled times.    When I moved again further away in 2007, email and then the Facebook was our means of communication.    Even though sometimes we went for months without communication,  there was a special friendship bond between us.   If we did write to each other, the email were usually free sharing of our feelings.

Christina & I, 28 June 2009

Christina was diagnosed with cervical cancer and was cured in 2012 after radiotherapy, chemotherapy and brachytherapy.

2013 she started to have excruciation back pain.  ST-scan showed she had cancer near her lungs.    We were still writing long messages to each other on the Facebook from the month of August, when she started chemotherapy.   The last messages, on the Facebook, that we exchanged with each other, was on the 30 October.

On the last week of November, I felt strongly about snail-mailing Christina a Christmas card.   We had never written each other a snail mail because it cost nothing by electronic mail.   I was thinking that Christina would love to receive a paper card for a change.   I also intended to send a well-wish card from time to time, from then on to keep her spirits up while she was fighting the lung cancer.   To ensure what I had in my record is correct, I wrote to one of Christina's daughter for confirmation of Christina's postal address.   No response to my 5 messages sent from the 28-30 November.

30 November 2013, I wrote to another daughter.   I was so thankful she wrote back on the 1 December 2013, with Christina's correct address.   The Christmas card was snail mailed on the 2 December 2013.

23 December 2013, from the Facebook timeline and message to Christina's daughter confirmed that her mother had passed away on the 22 December, at the age of 52.   I was grateful to learnt that Christina received my Christmas card and had my special message for her.   I am thankful that it did not take a month to arrive, as in other snail mail that I have sent from US!

Sister Christina, I am thankful for the opportunity to know you while I was in Kota Kinabalu.  Even though I had moved further and further away from you, we have kept in touch whenever we could.  Even when we didn't get to communicate as much as we would love to, and even when we didn't hear from each other for a time, we will always be special in each other's heart.   I love you, my friend.   I am going to miss you if I come and visit Kota Kinabalu.  You will always be in my heart forever.   You have been a devoted Christian and I know that you are helping Heavenly Father in the spirit world.  Until we meet again, God be with you.

The Lord Calls (1)

June 2007 - June 2013

This is written in rememberance of a dear friend, Frances E. Graaf, who passed away on the 28 June 2013.    I miss her.   This is the story of our relationship, that I want to share.

Frances and I, 18 August 2008

June 2007: I was assisting with the pest control appointments in Yuma, AZ.  A loyal customer, Frances, and I got a liking to each other and we became friends.   We talked to each other on the phone, got to visit each other at our respective homes.  Even though she is in her 80's, she would drive (I didn't have a US driving licence yet) to my house and take me with her to do things together.   Alternatively Mike would take me to her house and then we would go out in her car.     She was living alone in a big house with a cat, and my heart goes to her.

Wednesday, 13 August 2008.  I went with Mike to collect the business truck back from the home of an employee who had resigned this day.  There was only me to drive Mike's car back home while Mike drove the business truck.    I had no choice but drove (using my Malaysian driving licence) the car by myself, followed behind Mike's truck.  On the way home, I couldn't keep up with Mike's speed, lost sight of him and landed in a strange  lane - Araby Lane.   There was a GPS in the car but I did not know how to use it.    I dialed Mike's cellphone but there was no answer.   Like a frightened child lost, I managed to get Frances on the phone.   I cried and told her I was lost.   She asked me where I was.   I didn't know what that lane was then.   Mike found me an hour later. 

Sunday, 8 February 2009, Frances & I saw the American Boys Chorus at the Yuma Performing Arts Center.  She got 2 admission tickets free from a neighbor who had left town.  I am so blessed that she invited me to go with her.   I enjoyed the performance very much.

Tuesday, 17 March 2009, I went with Frances for luncheon, in conjunction with St. Patrick's Day celebration, at the Foothills Assembly of God.  It was my 1st experience of St. Patrick's Day!
 
Last I saw Frances, at her home, was 3 April 2009.   I had brought a friend, Patricia, with the hope that they would get together when Mike & I moved away in  21 days to Sunray, TX.   Even since then I had moved to other places.  I am thankful that the landlines and the snail mail had kept us connected, as Frances did not do the email.

I remembered talking to her early 2013 and she told me her annual blood work was good.   For a number of weeks in June 2013, I had tried to call Frances but nobody answered.   I wanted to tell Frances that we were moving again on the 7 August 2013.    11 July 2013, the same tel. no. that I had been calling for the past 6 years was no longer in service!  I felt something was wrong.  I know Frances would have told me if she was selling the house or moving away. The next day, 12 July 2013, I wrote a snail mail, addressed to Frances, at her address hoping that the letter would be forwarded to her, if she had moved, or someone would call me and tell me how she was doing.

3 August 2013 postmarked on postcard from Frances' son, Scott, reported that his mother had passed away.   Scott did not reply to my query as to the cause of his mother's death.

Frances would be in her mid 80's if she is still alive.   Frances and I chatted on the phone for an hour or more.   We shared  our lives like mother and daughter.  Our conversations had been a blessing in my life.  She listened to me patiently as I confided in her.  Frances would be in her mid 80's if she is alive now.   My mother would be 88 years old if she is alive too.   My mother had passed away in November 2007.    I am thankful to my Heavenly Father for sending Frances into my life.
 

What is your Interest?

Friday, 22 May 2009

A lady friend called yesterday, asking if Lian or I would like to buy a ticket from her for a 3-day course, starting today, by the famous writer of "Rich Dad Poor Dad" - Robert Kiyosaki.

She has bought 2 tickets a year ago but she alone could attend the course as the other intended participant is away from the country.

The tickets were RM500 each when she bought them a year ago. They were gold seats because they were seats in the 4th row from the stage. Now, the general seat is RM2990 and the budget seat is RM1998. So her seats now cost over RM3000. She welcome to part her spare ticket for whatever one can offer on top of her original cost.

Lian and I were not interested. I know other people would grab that opportunity. They say it is worth it, an investment to the accumulation of monetary wealth and financial independence. Besides being not interested, I don't have that kind of money to invest and no matter what people say I don't care about this Robert Kawasaki.

I suggested my lady friend contact a man friend, who I know greatly admire this icon figure of Robert Kawasaki and, who incidentally was arriving in Kuala Lumpur this morning. Maybe he would be interested. Unfortunately this man friend had prior appointments.

Finally, my lady friend asked if either Lian or I would want to attend, free of charge. She didn't want to waste the ticket.

I am so sorry, my dear friend. We can't. Even though they say it would be an experience of a lifetime with this famous man, this 3-day course would take away the precious weekend time with our family members, who we don't see during the weekdays and sometimes for many weekends and months. Maybe it is only A weekend but life is unpredictable. We may not have ANOTHER weekend. And, also I prefer attending church meetings on Sundays.

I asked if she could sell back the spare ticket to the organiser to resell it for whatever the present price is and thus making a profit. Sad to hear that she can't. Well! consider that it is still cheaper to attend the course for RM1000 (the total of the 2 tickets she bought) than to pay for the present price of RM3000 plus for the gold seat.

Know you have a great time, my friend. Enjoy.

Treasure in the Junk Mail

Wednesday, 4 March 2009

Luckily for the Hotmail, there are not as many as the Yahoo or the Google, otherwise I would have delete them all with a few clicks.

This is probably the 3rd time I found a friend in the Junk. A friend, whose new address, is not yet listed in my contacts.

She wrote: Hi! Guess who l m? l bought a laptop about 3 weeks ago, so far only know how to e mail, ............................................

It was her subject title that caught my eye. It was how we met. It was what we did together. It was what causes misunderstandings between us, but ultimately strengthen our relationship.

I have been thinking about her a lot lately and missing her.

Hamper of Scrapbooking Kit

Monday, 28 January 2008

Must be my lucky day today - 28th day of the year 2008. Someone came and presented me with a hamper of scrapbooking kit!


The surprise gesture definitely lifted up my spirit. I was feeling down yesterday afternoon as well as yesterday night. Blamed the mood on my hormones!


I have never done scrapbooking before so this would definitely be interesting. I know Lian would love this. She likes handicrafts and she is good in it as well.

Friendships are Presents from Heaven

Saturday, 1 December 2007

In the book "Hugs for Friends" an Unknown said "Some people come into our lives and quickly go... Some stay for awhile and leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never the same."

They came to Malaysia as missionaries only for awhile and they have left footprints on my heart.

Yes, friendships are presents from heaven! Thanks to all the friends that Mike & I were able to meet. You have made our trip to Utah more meaningful and enjoyable.

Nov 22 (Thur) - Mesa, Arizona - A Thanksgiving Day indeed to meet with Brother Lamb & Brother Rowley, who had served as missionaries in the Miri-Sarawak-Malaysia branch.

The members just love them to pieces!

Nov 23 (Fri) - St. George, Utah - Brother/Sister Telford who had served as missionaries in the Kota Kinabalu-Sabah-Malaysia branch . I remembered their first day in Kota Kinabalu as the 20 August 2004.


Brother Telford with his gong from Sabah-Malaysia.

I love to hear Sister Telford sing. She has such lovely voice. She taught the members of the Kota Kinabalu-Sabah-Malaysia branch to sing. There are many songs that reminded me of her when I sing them, my favourite being "As Sisters in Zion and We Will Bring the World His Truth". Because of her, I have learnt to sing better.

Nov 23 (Fri) - St. George, Utah - Brother/Sister Smiley who had served as missionaries in the Miri-Sarawak-Malaysia branch in 1999.


24 Nov (Sat) - Bountiful, Utah - Brother/Sister Jensen who had served as missionaries in the Miri-Sarawak-Malaysia branch in the period 2004/2005.


25 Nov (Sun) - Farmington, Utah - Sister Norberg, whom I befriended in the internet in January 2006 and have kept in touch since. This is the first time we have met in person!


and Brother Norberg, whom I have only communicated so far via email and telephone!


25 Nov (Sun) - Farmington, Utah - Brother/Sister Jacobs who have served as missionaries in the Kota Kinabalu-Sabah-Malaysia branch, in the period 2003/2004. We had memorable time visiting the Sisters together.


26 Nov (Mon) - Salt Lake City - Brother/Sister Broadhead who had served as missionaries in the Kota Kinabalu-Sabah-Malaysia branch from Jan-June 2000. I remembered whenever I took them home to their apartment, after Sunday church meetings, Sister Broadhead would insisted a hug before I drove away. I was not a hugging person then, but I have learnt!

26 Nov (Mon) - Salt Lake City, Utah - Brother/Sister Bishop who had served as missionaries in the Kota Kinabalu-Sabah-Malaysia branch from Nov-Dec 2001. It was a very short while but they have left footprints on my heart.

26 Nov (Mon) - Salt Lake City, Utah - A wonderful get-together lunch with Brother/Sister Jacobs, Brother/Sister Bishops and Brother/Sister Broadheads.

27 Nov (Tue) - American Fork, Utah - Brother/Sister Folsom, who had served as missionaries in the Miri-Sarawak-Malaysia branch in 1998. They were the first LDS missionary couple that Lian, Yean & I met, when we started investigating the church in 1998. It has been 9 years since. Brother/Sister Folsoms were fondly addressed by the children of the branch as "Grandpa" and "Grandma".

27 Nov (Tue) - Provo, Utah - Brother/Sister Merritt who have served as missionaries in West Malaysia, Curent Provo MTC Mission President/Sister Boone who have served as Singapore Mission President, Sister Serrao who have served as missionary in the Miri-Sarawak-Malaysia branch. Wonderful people!


27 Nov (Tue) - Provo, Utah - Brother/Sister Watts who had served as missionaries in the Miri-Sarawak-Malaysia branch.

28 Nov (Wed) - Cove Fort, Utah - Interestingly we met with Brother/Sister Telford again. They were driving to Midway, Utah and we were driving from Provo Utah!

I hope to meet with the other missionary couples some day! Wonderful people!

Same Birthday

Monday, 15 October 2007

This was an interesting, fun and neat discovery!

As I was creating a birthday calendar of my friends and family, I noticed 2 birthdays. I thought I had made an erorr in my entries. Double-checked their response. Yes, they were the same date - the same day, the same month and the same year - 16 December 1932. And amazingly, they had served a mission in Malaysia. They do not know each other as they served in different branches and they have not met each other either. To add to the excitement - both their first name are basically the name, except for a little variance, because of gender's difference. I am waiting for response of their birth time!

A Sweet Note from a Sweet Couple

Sunday, 14 October 2007

This was a note that I had safe-kept away. It was not just an ordinary note. It was a paper that was written by the sweetest couple that I know in Yuma.

It was dated the September 06, 2007. They wrote:

This is a great day! Irene has returned to Yuma.
To celebrate, I have arranged for the weather to get cooler beginning the end of September.
You will like it even more.
Welcome Home.
Gr... and Gl.... Ha..... and all of Yuma

I thought that was very sweet of them. Thank you! That piece of paper was at the door to greet us when Mike brought me home on the 6 September 2007.

The summer had been a little too hot for me and autumn was soon to come.

Surprise Hug

Sunday, 18 March 2007

How would you feel if a 5 year old boy rush to you, put his arms around your legs and bury his head there for a minute or so? If it is your son, your grandson, your nephew or someone you played with often, maybe you wouldn't be taken by surprise.

I have been away for 5 Sundays and it was indeed a pleasant surprise, coming from him, a boy that I occasionally sent home, together with his elder sister, after the block meetings.

Have he mistaken me for someone? Or he just has a liking to me and missed me?

Valentine's Day - 2007

Wednesday, 14 February 2007

A good friend sent this to me last week. I asked whether I could copy this interesting story to my blog. What other day is more appropriate than posting it today, since it is Valentine's Day here in Malaysia.

February 14 is Valentine's Day. Although it is celebrated as a lovers' holiday today, with the giving of candy, flowers, or other gifts between couples in love, it originated in 5th Century Rome as a tribute to St. Valentine, a Catholic bishop.

For eight hundred years prior to the establishment of Valentine's Day, the Romans had practiced a pagan celebration in mid-February commemorating young men's rite of passage to the god Lupercus. The celebration featured a lottery in which young men would draw the names of teenage girls from a box. The girl assigned to each young man in that manner would be his sexual companion during the remaining year.

In an effort to do away with the pagan festival, Pope Gelasius ordered a slight change in the lottery. Instead of the names of young women, the box would contain the names of saints. Both men and women were allowed to draw from the box, and the game was to emulate the ways of the saint they drew during the rest of the year. Needless to say, many of the young Roman men were not too pleased with the rule changes.

Instead of the pagan god Lupercus, the Church looked for a suitable patron saint of love to take his place. They found an appropriate choice in Valentine, who, in AD 270 had been beheaded by Emperor Claudius.

Claudius had determined that married men made poor soldiers. So he banned marriage from his empire. But Valentine would secretly marry young men that came to him. When Claudius found out about Valentine, he first tried to convert him to paganism. But Valentine reversed the strategy, trying instead to convert Claudius. When he failed, he was stoned and beheaded.

During the days that Valentine was imprisoned, he fell in love with the blind daughter of his jailer. His love for her, and his great faith, managed to miraculously heal her from her blindness before his death. Before he was taken to his death, he signed a farewell message to her, "From your Valentine." The phrase has been used on his day ever since.

Although the lottery for women had been banned by the church, the mid-February holiday in commemoration of St. Valentine was still used by Roman men to seek the affection of women. It became a tradition for the men to give the ones they admired handwritten messages of affection, containing Valentine's name.

The first Valentine card grew out of this practice. The first true Valentine card was sent in 1415 by Charles, duke of Orleans, to his wife. He was imprisoned in the Tower of London at the time.

Cupid, another symbol of the holiday, became associated with it because he was the son of Venus, the Roman god of love and beauty. Cupid often appears on Valentine cards.

Happy Valentine's Day!!

Unforgettable Gestures

Happy New Year! My first post for the year 2006.

Today, I am inclined to share three of the gestures of my friends. Gestures, that naturally come from their characteristics, which they displayed with no expectation of any rewards in return. Gestures, that they (the givers) have forgotten about but I (the receiver) will always remember.

Saturday, July, 1987 – Miri - A Birthday cake!

My birthday! I was on a trip to Mulu caves with my friends. Didn’t announce to any of them that it coincided with my birthday. Don’t want them to bring any presents for me either. This trip itself was a birthday gift to myself, to be get out of town and explore.

It was early in the night. We just sat around the dinning hall and enjoy each other’s company. There was nothing else we could do. Can’t go walking – too dark outside. The other lights in the vicinity were from the other hostels. We were surrounded by jungles, river, sounds of birds!

Jackie said: “I have a surprise. Wait” She walked out of the hall and came back later with a box, undeniably a cake box. She placed it on the table and called everyone to gather around. She asked me to open it. My heart beat fast because I guess it was for me. Jackie knew the date of my birthday and she had noted the date of the trip. She didn’t tell anyone else. She wanted to surprise me. “Happy Birthday, Irene”, said Jackie.

I will never forget Jackie for that surprised birthday cake. Believe it or not, I had never had a birthday cake until then and it was my first and most memorable one.

Thank you, Jackie.

Thursday, 1 July, 1994 – Bradford - Food for you!

Vacation, with my family, in England, had come to an end. We were going home to Malaysia. Our luggage were packed and we were ready to leave. We were going to take the tube to the Heathrow International Airport for the 2200 hrs flight from London to Kuala Lumpur.

We had to pass the sitting room and the kitchen as we descended the stairs of the terrace flat. Jessie handed me a plastic container and told me that it was for us to eat at the airport. She is a soft spoken lady and she did not tell me what was inside. I didn’t ask her either, only thanked her and said goodbye.

We have gotten fed up with burgers, fish and chips and any other English food. Chinese food is expensive and not nice here.. What did I find in the plastic container that Jessie gave me? Boiled rice and fried fish. No wonder I smelled the aroma of fried fish when I was in our room upstairs. Jessie was secretly preparing food in the kitchen for us. In Malaysia, it is common for us to eat boiled rice with fried fish. But at Heathrow, it had never tasted so delicious. Furthermore, it satisfied our hunger and we did not have to look for food.

Thank you, Jessie.

January, 2005 – Kota Kinabalu – Midnight Angel!

It was past 11:30 pm at night. Unable to sleep, very upset emotionally, confused, and if I don’t let those feelings out, I am going to suffer depression and who knows what! Because of hurt, self-pity, loss of self-confidence, loss of reasoning sensibility, reality, enveloping anger or whatever negative feelings, I might commit some undesirable and regrettable acts. I had to talk to Agnes.

Agnes has been my pillar of strength and comfort. I had known her for over a year and we have grown close to each other. Although busy with her life as a single mother, she was never busy to take my calls and listen to me. I know if I asked her to help she would do so.

Agnes was not in bed yet. After listening to me, she said “Irene, I am going to drive over to your place after I have picked my son back home”. I told her that was not necessary because it was almost midnight and that I would be okay after I have talked to her. Tonight, she felt that she needed to come to me. She was worried that I might unthinkably do something foolish. She came as she said, visited with me until she knows I am sober and composed. It was almost 01:00 am in the morning when she left.

Thank you, Agnes. Change the last letter of her name to ‘l’ and she has all the letters to the word “Angel”.