Blood Is Thicker Than Water

This entry will be all about my family, my blood. Just like other ordinary family we do have our high and low moments. We are not the perfect family but deep down I know we do love and care for each other always. I would like to capture all the memorable moments I had with each and every family members of mine which ever I could remember :) Let's start!

Year 1999 - Big Sis Graduation Day

Year 2014 -Without Acha :(

Father/Acha:  Well a short paragraph will definitely be insufficient for him so there is a separate entry just for acha. Here is a brief  one :) Dedicated Tamil Teacher and active politician with a good purpose in life. We still receive appreciation from his ex-students,colleagues, friends and people he helped during his early days. His good deed's will always be remembered and we are very proud of him.
My memories with him on his healthy years were limited as he fell ill when I was just at the tender age of thirteen. Life changed tremendously when he was diagnosed with stroke and followed up by gangrene which cause his left foot to be amputated. Initially he was upset and disagree but have to give in when the doctor mentioned it may threaten his life. Rest of his years after the operation revolved mostly being at home and hospital visits. We lost him in 2013 due to pneumonia. Sometimes i wish i was born earlier to spend some healthy years with him rather than growing up seeing him suffering but i did have the opportunity to take care of him. I wish i had more opportunities to take care of him but god loves him more and it is time for him to rest in peace.

Amma & me

Nephew & Amma

AMMA -strong women and been the pillar of the family. She never had any profession but being a housewife and taking care of four children is truly a great profession I would say. All four of us were different in many ways each with own character's and personality so it must have been a great challenge. Not only taking care of us she stood by my father until his last days, taking care of him like a little baby full of care and attention. It was not an easy task as she was also getting old and getting weak. She never gave up during hard times in life and went through it bravely.A very talented women i would say as she sews very well, cooks almost any dishes and is a pro when comes to traditional sweets.  Oh yea not forgetting a good singer too but sadly all her talents were within four walls. She has high interest in home remedies by using herbal medicine thus she have her own book of collection on herbal remedies. She knows mostly anything from beautiful hair to health related remedies by just using herbs that we can get from our garden. She doesn't encourage us to use modern medicine but insists the nature way is always the best. Even though she is above 60 now i still envy her long hair which is still beautiful. Talented in many ways I think the best will be her story telling because she loves to talk and share her flashbacks all the time. To summarize she is one the inspiration to all the ladies to be strong and independent!

Next my siblings!My big brother was the eldest followed by my two elder sisters. Being the baby of the family I received lots of love from my siblings and parents especially due to the age gap. We grew up with lots of wonderful memories which I treasure till date. My brother always been a perfect example to all of us from his education to sportsmanship and leadership qualities.He has been shining like a star since his schooling years being  the head prefect of school and now he is a successful manager in plantation field.  I was just 6 years old when he left to further his studies in UPM. I remember those days we do not own phone at home so he usually calls our neighbor aunt's home line across the neighborhood.

Bro & SIL

Me and mum will wait for the call and he usually ends the call with kisses via the phone to this little sister :) Not sure if he remembers all this but I do :)
Now he has his own little family,married to beautiful wife and blessed with super duper cute son who is also following his footsteps especially in sportsmanship- football. Junior football player in the making!

Than comes the ladies my sister's, the ones I probably spent most of my years with growing up, loving ,fighting, shouting ,laughing, hugging and crying together. We have our up's and down's but i cherish every moment with my sister's. I know i'm still their baby sister at times they worry a lot for me. Dear checi's I might not express my love much but nothing replaces both of you for sure and i'm glad i have you both as my sister's and etta as my big brother being my perfect guidance.

Celebrating B'Day

Baby me & Big Sis

My big sister a very responsible & caring person, get's emotional very quickly but has always been the independent one. Being a teacher now she is the one being at hometown and taking care of amma so a big salute for that :) Most of the time spent with her was on education, house keeping and shopping lol. I would proudly say she is one of the reason I got A1 in Maths as im not a big fan of Maths ha-ha. Yet with her tutorials and guidance i did perfect for my SPM examination.All of us hated that moment for sure being asked to study and get scolding's right, but it actually shaped me up well.She loves to shop so I will always be her shopping mate and of course .I get some new clothes too. Once I remember she baked cake for us, the "sweetest cake" I'm sure she know's which cake i'm talking about...Even not a pro in kitchen she loves to do house keeping, cleaning this cleaning that, changing curtain, some flower arrangements and so on. And yea i'm the loyal assistant always hehe.Oh yea and we share the same birthday just the year is 11 years apart hehe :)

Carrying the little me (my second sis ) 

Me & innocent looking second sis :p

Next my second sissy, the happy go lucky, funny and fashionista. She is now a PRO in bridal make up and is coming up with baby steps brushing up her talents. Wishing you all the best for everything you do checi :) Well we were like friends as the age gap was lesser and we fight a lot too :P She loves to tease me and call me funny names which i do not want to mention here ( TMI) . There was once i was little around 4 years old, well of course the baby sis will want to follow what her big sister doing right? So she was playing on this big ' Tong Air" like a see saw using body to roll. She is big girl so definitely she can balance her body so when i lied down on the tong my little legs and hand's did not reach theground..ended up i fell straight on my face and broke my front tooth( Nasib Baik Gigi Susu Je ). What else she get's the whacking la from amma and as usual her hiding place is the bathroom ( cause no key into the bathroom ) ! We used to fight to watch tv programme and we play together too until i was 10 years old...she left to continue her studies too..That's when i felt loneliest and missed all of my siblings.So it was just me, amma and and after several years i moved out to pursue my studies too

As years passed we are all so busy with our own life's and sometimes it is nice to look back and cherish the special moments and bonding we had. Love them all from bottom of my heart and nothing can replace this special relationship we call Family :)

In Memory of Dear Father (1941-2013)

11-June-2013, the devastating phone call shattered my heart. I cried out loud but nothing could bring him back alive:( Even writing about it now brings tears to my eyes.The man we loved the most is no more after one month struggling in ICU. I knew you fought your best acha (father), you fought hard to keep breathing for your family sake but god loves you more.Though it was hard we had to accept the fact and let you go peacefully. If only you were alive now and be there for my wedding day, If only i can hug and kiss you again, If only i can see your innocent smile again, If only i can ask for Sorry for hurting you & If only i can say I Love You! Below is a memoir written by me & my siblings for my father's book release, Thanks to his good friends who worked to fulfil his last wish. Yes finally it was released last year ( 2014) a book about his life. Below is the memoir :

This memoir is written in living remembrance of our dearest father who was the most lovable hero that will be missed forever. Every human being is born and brought to this world by a man and a woman who we address them as parents. We as their children have that special person in our lives and felt fortunate about it .We are also very grateful to them who brought us up to the successful person we are now.The best words to describe our father would be unwavering love, honesty, humility and definitely a man of extra ordinary moral courage. The values that he embraced were a legacy for us to emulate indeed.

His nature of forgiving and sincerity gave us the much needed believe in leading a purposeful life for all of us. He is a true life hero who put others above him and never longed for anything in returns at any time. The entire life lessons taught by our father were humility, courage and honesty. The most memorable wisdom advice from him is.

“Acting for what is right regardless of risk to self and morality is doing what is right no matter what you are told”

We were raised in a middle class family and the enormous hardship he had gone trough to bring up his four children is an untold story to anyone. Though he was a busy man he never neglected his children and always showered us with love and care. He never said no if we need anything but since we do understand his financial status as children we never demanded much either. He carries the burden of his own fears without allowing his children to see it The time we spent with him during our childhood was limited due to his over committed towards his career as a Tamil teacher and social services .However his presence always brings us cheers and happiness which we dearly missed forever.

 He was very unique in giving advices and encouragement for us to excel in life as a whole. He insisted us to workout success on how we can help others within ones capacity and quantify richness in happiness rather than money or wealth.His mentors such as the great philosophers Evera, Anna, Thiruvaluvar and Bharithiyar have had influenced his overall charismatic which in most instances inspired us indirectly. These values were not thought to us but we have learnt from his way of life and unknowingly being embraced by us to the fullest. He is our role model in many ways and we hope we can bring these values passed to our children.

          His challenging part of his life was during his elderly age due to illness where he felt he became a burden and helpless which he could not accept. However, with the support given by his wife, children and close friends, he managed to adapt to the reality and moved on with great will power till his last breath. Even during his last days he still did not give up and fought for his life for the sake of his family. He was in ICU for almost a month which was nearly impossible feat for an elderly man who fought pneumonia with complicated heart attacks, stroke and depended on life support. We are indeed very proud of his will power to live and appreciated every second he prolonged to live, although we knew he was fighting a losing battle. Even during that critical moment he portrayed his qualities of never say dies attitude.

Father with first grandson D.Visvajid Kuhan

We are in believe that he had realised our presence during each and every visit to see him even he was unconscious. We cherished every last moment spent with him but only wished if he was able to talk to us his last words. Every day during his hospitalisation we hoped that he will get up from his deep sleep but we had to accept his slight response was good enough for us. He did response with slight movement and tears which we assume he does realise what is happening around. Those were the ways he expressed his emotions during his last days. 

We felt blessed to have a great father such as him in our life. His beautiful soul is irreplaceable and definitely has been a great loss to us. No matter how many years will be passed yet his memories will always last in our heart forever.May his soul rest in peace and his legacy as a lovable father and social activist will be cherished for a long time to come.

GONE BUT NEVER FORGOTTEN...... WE LOVE YOU ALWAYS “ ACHA”

From his children

Devanand,Yamuna,Yogeetha & Privinna
                              
                                       Video of him in youtube link as below

                 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elmYcHV_SQ0

My Childhood...Flashbacks!!

We all wish to be the happy little kid again don't we? I do really really miss my childhood and life back than compared to the hustle and bustle of city life nowadays.. yea i live in KL now !

Of course nothing is better than our hometown right? I'm budak Teluk Intan which is a small town in the state of Perak. The fresh air,coconut trees, the cycle ride to school, ting-ting man aka roti bai, the humble people and the evening play time with our Taman friend's and etc. I'm sure kids nowadays hardly experience those precious moments. Lifestyle now is all about android's and apple's..its all about virtual click click swap swap nothing much than that. 

I'm very thankful to be born in the 80's ..great childhood years but perhaps our parents childhood were even better...probably true indeed because my mum always shares her stories which were quite interesting such as playing near the river, drinking water from the well, walking in the rubber estate, studying under the lantern light,getting bitten by the angry swan's and also not forgetting the getting whacking story...LOL. My mum is a very good story teller like seriously she sometimes repeats the same story till we memorised it so well hehe while my father is the quiet ones so he writes diary everyday and keep it personal to himself. Yea he does share some interesting stories but my mum is the champion la :) In the future I will share my story to my kids and brag about how superb it was

(filter the whacking probably).Anyways I was a good girl ehemmm so compared to my siblings my rotan story not that much la.

I lived in a mixed neighbourhood with all races living together peacefully.Those were the days we knew our neighbours very well and helped each other when in need. All the kids in the neighbourhood will wait for our 'golden play time' in the evening..as we were only allowed to play from 4 p.m to probably around 6 plus and than all the mummy's will start shout out adik masuk !!! There was once my friends and I played masak masak ( cooking ).We had this old pan, bricks as our stove, some stolen onions from mum's kitchen and lighter. Guess what happened? One of my friend placed the lighter near the burning bricks so daboooom 'MELETOP'/minor explosion! End up all of us ran back to house and realised some hair burnt away with some black stains on our innocent face. So we quickly washed the stains and blew off the burnt hair away haha..than act like nothing happened phew....Thank god it was just minor explosion and thinking back how dumb was it to place a lighter near burning fire.It is all because of the Ah Ching boy ! I wonder where he is now ?

                             THAN :View opposite my house back in hometown :) How peaceful

                                   NOW:View opposite my office....