Adebelle

World Cup is here once again. Yeah, it’s been four years since grandpa passed away. It only occured to me a while ago while I was drying my hair in mum’s room. I could never forget about the day God beckoned grandpa to his kingdom.

It was June 16th 2006, Sunday when mum received the devastating phone call from my cousin, Cecilia. She didn’t return to bed and I knew something was terribly wrong. My instinct told me the phone call only brought bad news. I went out from the bedroom and found her sobbing quietly in the balcony. None of us exchanged a word. All I knew was my tears couldn’t stop themselves. I cried and cried and cried. I didn’t care about the Fluid Mechanics paper I had to take the next day. We took the first flight to JB and it was as if it’s fated, mum met her sister in the airport. Her eyes were swollen. Her face mirrowed ours. Totally saddened by the horrible news.

I could not imagine going through the same pain ever. As the taxi pulled over about 3 meters away from grandparent’s, I could see two marquees being set up. These blue marquees are usually for funeral. I didn’t like the sight of it.  Before seeing these marquees, I was still hoping to see grandpa sitting on his usual spot reading newspaper.The reality hit me finally and it hit me hard. There was a funeral going on and it’s grandpa’s.

My mum and aunt rushed to the front door and immediately got down on their knees. They couldn’t contain their emotions anymore. The two of them were crying like children who had just lost their parent. Grandma could only weep at the side. The rest of the family joined in. Everyone was crying. I stood right at the front gate, not moving an inch. It’s just too much for me. I couldn’t believe it’s happening to all of us. I couldn’t bring myself to walk in that living hall where the coffin was. I refused to believe lying in the coffin was the man I love the most in the whole wide world. Grandpa meant the world to me. He’s my rock and my strength. He is the source of wisdom. He is my one and only grandfather.

I stood there trying to make sense out of this terrible event. Aunt came and grabbed me by my arms. Gently, she walked me to the living hall. My feet were rooted on the ground and I was shivering. I refused to move. I refused to see my grandpa lying so still in the coffin and not responding to my calling. "It’s ok. Don’t have to be afraid. It’s grandpa. Don’t be scared, ok?" I heard aunt coaxing me. Finally, I took a deep breath and walked towards that dark brown casket.

It’s grandpa. It’s really grandpa. I called out and he didn’t respond. I called out again, wishing he would open his eyes and smile at me. He didn’t. He looked asleep and nothing in the world could wake him up. It really broke my heart. How could he ignore me? My tears wetted the surface of the casket. I remember screaming at him until I was too tired. It’s true, grandpa is gone forever and I must accept it. For the next 3 days, we guarded by his side, saying prayers and singing hymms for him.

It’s still very painful to talk about his burial day. I think I should just leave that out for now…

World Cup will never be the same again. It will always remind me of my grandpa. Germany was on song that night. I sat next to his bed in the hospital watching the match with him. Germany beat Saudi Arabia by 8 goals. He loved football and WWF. I developed the interest of watching WWF from him. Grandpa was particularly fond of Rikishi, that fat wrestler. He made grandpa laugh. He was a man of rather a few words and didn’t express his emotions too much. The only bonding time we shared was after 10pm. He would accompany me in the living hall as I tried to finish my homework. Everyone would be fast asleep. Grandpa wouldn’t go to bed until I finished my homework.

He was my number one fan. He had always been so proud of my achievement in school. He bragged about my results to his coffee buddies. There is a twinkle in grandma’s eyes everytime she tells me that. It’s a shame grandpa couldn’t see me in my graduation gown. He would be so happy. I am his first grandchild who has ever made it to university. I knew how much that means to him. But I know he was there during that big day of mine.

There is no need to describe how great a man he was. Many people turned up for his funeral. None but everyone spoke of the good deed grandpa had done on earth. He had the strongest faith in God. He prayed everyday after lunch. He prayed even more while he was terminally ill. If you are a non-believer, of course you wouldn’t believe in God’s miracle. One night, shortly after we left the hospital and were heading back to KL, uncle Peter called and he told mum grandpa was praying fervently. Both his hands were up in the air, praying. He chanted, "Jesus, Mother Mary and Joseph come rescue me." He was having problem taking my hand let alone hanging both hands in the air for nearly an hour. We believe the spirit was with him to ease his pain.

He was a man who commanded great respect. He helped people in need. He bought contributed to the blind. He bought postcards designed by prisoners when none of us sent greeting cards to anyone that time. He gave the indian lady who walked in our house money because she was begging. He didn’t have much education and he self-taught himself to read and write. Occasionally he uttered a few english words to make me laugh. He was the most loving grandpa in the world.

He would rather eat the bones and save the meat for the youngs. We were mad at his habit and wanted him to eat more. I feel so sorry that I was angry at him because of this. I couldn’t understand why anyone would rather eat the bones when there were plenty meat to go around. Then one night, he said to me, "Grandpa is old now and the meat will serve no purpose to an old body. But you are young, you should eat more." Yes, I am still crying everytime I remember that.

This man has taught me so much without me realising it. He taught me to be honest and to be hardworking. He told me to stand up on my own where I last fell down. He taught me the beauty of forgiving. His memory helps me to resist temptations that would lead me astray. His face keeps me going whenever I want to call it quit. He was a man with integrity and his granddaughter will folllow his foot steps. He is the man who changed my life forever, for the better.

Though it’s been four years now, you are still deeply missed, grandpa. Happy father’s day! We love you.

This entry was posted on Saturday, June 17th, 2006 at 10:14 am and is filed under Uncategorized. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.