A Ray of Hope
6 October 2010
It was a cool Tuesday afternoon after a light drizzle when we gathered at the Fairy Memorial Park in Klang at about 5.00 pm. It was our silver wedding anniversary. The skies were a cool but dull blue.
A few close friends and family members gathered to mark the occasion.
The Chinese tradition is that every year there is a season called 'cheng beng' where they would visit the graves of their loved ones to remember those that had left them. I couldn't relate to those occasions because they were usually for visiting the grave site of grandparents and other relatives. Until now. When it hits close to you because it involved someone really dear and close to you.
Today was for a different occasion. We reflected, we reminisced, we cried.
Silent tears were difficult to avoid. We sang a song, shared a memory. For some, a lot of thoughts must have crossed the mind. Some questions even. They were in deep thought. Some could not be expressed. These were still early days of grief.
I have asked myself, if 25 years ago, I could see that today I would be grieving over this loss, what would I have decided?
I look back at the joys of the 25 wonderful years we've had, what a wonderful wife and mother she has been and the three lovely children we have, I guess I would the answer would still be the same. 'I do'.
I read out the poem that I wrote for the occasion, 'A Table for Two'. We all placed flowers around the cross.
This was what Kathryn would have liked. Just a few close friends.
Just as we were about to leave we saw that the evening sun had begun to shine through the clouds giving a beautiful yellowish blue hue. It gave a warmth to the place where we were. It was as if God was trying to say something.
I reached for my camera to capture the moment. The cross looked striking against the clearing skies. The evening sun was not hidden any more behind the clouds. Its rays were beginning to shine through.
They were rays of hope. Beyond the grave.
(The above picture was taken against the evening sun from where we stood)
6 October 2010
It was a cool Tuesday afternoon after a light drizzle when we gathered at the Fairy Memorial Park in Klang at about 5.00 pm. It was our silver wedding anniversary. The skies were a cool but dull blue.
A few close friends and family members gathered to mark the occasion.
The Chinese tradition is that every year there is a season called 'cheng beng' where they would visit the graves of their loved ones to remember those that had left them. I couldn't relate to those occasions because they were usually for visiting the grave site of grandparents and other relatives. Until now. When it hits close to you because it involved someone really dear and close to you.
Today was for a different occasion. We reflected, we reminisced, we cried.
Silent tears were difficult to avoid. We sang a song, shared a memory. For some, a lot of thoughts must have crossed the mind. Some questions even. They were in deep thought. Some could not be expressed. These were still early days of grief.
I have asked myself, if 25 years ago, I could see that today I would be grieving over this loss, what would I have decided?
I look back at the joys of the 25 wonderful years we've had, what a wonderful wife and mother she has been and the three lovely children we have, I guess I would the answer would still be the same. 'I do'.
I read out the poem that I wrote for the occasion, 'A Table for Two'. We all placed flowers around the cross.
This was what Kathryn would have liked. Just a few close friends.
Just as we were about to leave we saw that the evening sun had begun to shine through the clouds giving a beautiful yellowish blue hue. It gave a warmth to the place where we were. It was as if God was trying to say something.
I reached for my camera to capture the moment. The cross looked striking against the clearing skies. The evening sun was not hidden any more behind the clouds. Its rays were beginning to shine through.
They were rays of hope. Beyond the grave.
(The above picture was taken against the evening sun from where we stood)
25 years. LKY spoke about his 61 yrs with his wife.
ReplyDeleteI have known people with over 50 years. 30 years. 10 years. Less than a year.
Nobody on setting out from the harbour knows to which segment of the statistics fate falls.
Set out, though, we all must. Life is a journey.