It’s Been Seven Years

Dear Papa,

  How are you doing up there?

  Today is the seventh year since the day you left us. Time does fly, doesn’t it? I remember you telling us that our time on Earth is like going overseas for a holiday. We may have lots of fun while we’re here, but we all have to go home eventually.

  That’s a nice analogy papa. I guess the big difference is that when we come home from for holidays, we can always go for another one next week. When we leave Earth, we cannot go back even if we wanted to, isn’t it?

  Unless you are “Ironman” Tony Stark lah.

  Aiya, but it’s true some things are not meant to last forever.

  Last week, I had my Australian permanent residency revoked by the Australian Immigration. They said I did not manage to stay there for even 2 weeks in the past 5 years, so why should I keep my permanent residency? I was given a chance to appeal, but I don’t think my chances are high.

  I felt like it was such a loss. I remember how much effort you went through in 1996 to get that PR. I wanted to keep it, partly because the Australian PR was one of the few things you left for us, and partly because I thought it might be useful for the education of my children in the future.

  The Malaysian education system is so hopeless now. Can you believe they just reverted the teaching of Maths and Science in English back to Malay? Such a joke isn’t it? While the rest of the world is moving forward, our education system just flip-flops like that.

  At least mom is happy. Now that she knows I no longer have my Australian PR, at least she is certain that one of her children will be by her side.

  There is nothing to worry about me here, Papa. Things at work are getting more hectic, but manageable. Things with Ming are going really well too. She is very supportive in everything that I do and I am very lucky to have her.

  Did you know, Papa?! I recently won an award for my business!

  Ever since you left, the thing I worried the most is who to turn to for business advice when I need them.

  Recently, I joined a contest called the Enterprise Development Challenge, organized by a magazine in Singapore. They paired start-up entrepreneurs like myself with veteran businessmen as mentors. Over the course of 6 weeks we worked together to improve several aspects of our respective businesses.

  Some of the other young entrepreneurs are like CEOs of big hotel chains and famous websites!

  My mentor is a charismatic sports marketing agent called Marcus Luer, who heads a company called TotalSportsAsia. He is so passionate and knowledgeable. I learnt so much from him and have so much fun applying the things I learnt into my running of Level Up Fitness.

  Against much formidable contestants, I surprised when I was named the winner! I may have won a couple of awards for my blog, but this is the first time I won an award as an entrepreneur. I am so happy!

  Even the prizes are quite amazing, like Director’s Box tickets to Liverpool Anfield and a trophy worth RM20,000. But none of those are as valuable as the knowledge I gained from my mentor over those 6 weeks.

  Is he a guardian angel you sent to watch over me!? Haha!

  If you are capable of sending guardian angels, Papa, I think I may need another one really soon.

  As much as I have been taking care of my health by exercising and eating right, I went to the doctor recently and discovered I have stones in my gallbladder measuring up to 1cm. How the stones get in there, I have no idea. I swear I haven’t been swallowing rocks for fun!

  Anyway, doctor advised me to remove my gallbladder to reduce complications, but I’m having second thoughts about that. I noticed if I don’t drink alcohol or eat curry during the day, I won’t get stomach pains at night. Since I can live without alcohol and curry, I’ll just stop doing those.

  The doctor also found a lesion in my liver measuring up to 2cm. I have no idea how it get there. I’m gonna do a CT scan next Tuesday to find out.

  Please watch over me from up there?

  Anyway, I better stop here. It’s getting late and I have a 6am flight to catch to KK tomorrow.

  Papa, remember when I was really young, you like to call me from overseas? You always like to ask me if I missed you. I never answered you back then, because I was always too shy to answer it in front of Mom.

 

  I know it’s too late to answer this now, but yes Papa – I miss you very, very much.

 

 

Lots of love from your youngest son,

Kenny.

56 Replies to “It’s Been Seven Years”

  1. Stone in gall bladder – try googling for alternative solution. If I remember correctly, it’s abt apple juice (green), Epsom salt etc. drink and pass the stones out. That solved the problem for my dad and saved him from removing gall bladder. however, try at your own risk

  2. You can give MonaVie acai berry fruit juice a try if you have heard about it. The acai berry has very high anti-oxidant index compared with any other fruits. Hope it helps. Take care.

  3. U may want to drink apple juices for 5 days..final day drink a glass of Olive oil with lemon juices and a little bit of salt.
    Hope it will work for you. Enjoy for Borneo Run.

  4. Miss uncle too… Btw, do u have backache problem? I went thru scanning and doc told me they suspect it’s bladder stone. it’s not really about alcohol and curry. Probably u have same issue of taking insufficient drink per day.
    Anyway… Good luck for d treatment.

  5. Cutting down on oily food would help to reduce the pain as bile is secreted to help emulsify the fat.
    Removing the gallbladder definitely solves the problem but no operation is without risk.
    Envy on your trip to Anfield.
    Cheers

  6. Agree with medicboyz. And yup, alcohol and curry intakes are best limited if not stopped to alleviate the pain. Apart from these, make sure you include more fiber in your meals. Take care Kenny!

  7. Hmm, every year, annually, your post reminds me of my dad as well.. I’ve stopped writing after the 3rd year. Guess its because I know he already gotten used with his World, as what I had already gotten used of my life, without my daddy. Life, goes on….

  8. Very personal and touching. Your dad will be proud of you from up there.
    I share the lament of flip-flop policy of English to BM to English and back to BM. A bold move can turn around with a whim.

  9. That is a touching entry, Kenny – especially the last part, nearly brought me to tears. Thank you for sharing this with us.

  10. For a moment there I thought you are having a baby, LOL. That’s my first impression when I scrolled to the ultrasound picture. Oh well, hope everything will go your way, and you’ll recover in no time!

  11. Kenny,
    How come you worried about your dad’s business in the past but never mentioned you had an elder brother? Didn’t he take over the family business?

  12. kenny, refer to your earlier post on meeting stephen shum in HK!
    in some sense, he has a chance of being right abt you possibly having a small op!

  13. Sorry to hear about your loss. Perhaps you can speak to your Dad through prayers?
    I’m afraid the Aussie government can be quite strict when it comes to permanent residents who are not currently/have not been living in Australia.
    Yes, it’s true; our education system is terrible and when you compare it to back in the day, it’s worse now. >.

  14. Hi Kenny,
    It is shocking to get such news about your health. Do you happen to skip / not eating your breakfast on time?
    That’s the #1 cause of gallbladder stone.
    There’s a natural way to flush out your gallbladder stones, I had done that before and advised many of my friends to have done the same. Everyone has it actually, it’s just a matter of how many and how big the stones are…
    Follow these steps:
    1) Eat 5-10 green apples a day (can blend into juices), for 5 days
    a. Eat plainly, less or no oily and fried food..
    2) On the 6th day, skip dinner
    a. 6pm – Take 1 table spoon of Epsom salt (can get from Watson) + 1 cup full of warm water @ 6pm
    b. 8pm – Repeat as above
    c. 10pm – Squeeze 1-2 fresh lemon into half cup of fresh lemon juice, mix with half cup of virgin olive oil, mix both evenly and drink (you may need to hold your nose to stop yourself blow out what you drank)
    d. Go to bed, try to doze off by lying on the right side (ride side down, left side up)
    Explanation:
    – Green apple will soften the gall stones in the gall bladder
    – Epsom salt will cause the gall bladder duct to open
    – Fresh Lemon & Olive Oil is to act as lubricants for the gall stones to come out
    p/s: if you are not sure, do write to me. On the liver lesion, if you can provide me more info, I could advise you something. Liver is a very special organ that can replenish by itself, early detection of any anomaly gives a very good chance to recovery.

  15. Touched…
    talking about edu sys, totally agree…
    and feel sorry for the stone in the gallblader and the lesion too,
    Take care Sir, I believe you will recover soon. Malaysian love you!

  16. Thanks for sharing your story.
    Don’t worry about the scans. Hemangiomas are not uncommon- just a vascular malformation and typically has no relevance.
    Having a gallstone is no big deal either. Many people have it and are asymptomatic and if you haven’t had a gallstone ‘attack’ (cholecystitis) then surgery is unnecessary. Find yourself another doctor if yours is suggesting surgery.
    You have my email- feel free to contact me if you have more questions or concerns.
    For your reading pleasure:
    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0001318/

  17. Kenny, my dad had that stone like yours, and the doctor advised him to remove via operation, which is unnecessary for him now, he did what most of your reader’s comment, Apple juice, it’s really a natural cure, after drinking it for quite some time, he don’t have that kind of pain anymore, and is able to consume heavy meals, chickens, meats, curry etc… Hope the apple juice thing helps.

  18. Dear Kenny,
    I have been reading your post dedication to your dad every year and I cried in every post …its really touching 🙂
    Cheryl

  19. the Malaysian government only promote muslim. so Malaysian Chinese has to make effort to maintain Chinese language to keep Chinese identity. dont get drown ok. Keep good spirit!
    ??

  20. This is a welcoming change from the usual posts. It’s a more personal, back-to-basics style more in keeping to the writing when this blog started long ago. The sudden increase in comments should explain what people want to read.

  21. that’s a pretty touching post you got there. cliche but true. miracle does happen. keep believing.

  22. appreciate your effort in helping kenny with his gall bladder stones. Not only u’re helping him, u’ve managed to help alot of ppl out there sufferring from gall bladder and dilemna whether or not to go for operations. Once again, thank u very much

  23. if i were your dad,i would be really proud to have u as son..
    keep up the good work,Kenny 🙂
    oh and the gallstone,get rid of it la.Laser is possible nowadays.

  24. Hi Kenny,
    I lost my dad on May 5th, 9 years ago. Despite 9 years have past, I’m still missing him. And your last sentence really make me tear up. I hope he has a good life now wherever he is as he had worked so hard this past life.

  25. I just encountered your site today..and the first thing that I saw is your letter to your papa…I can’t help but remember my own father who also died 17 years ago, May 17, 1997…Like you I am too shy to say how much I loved him when he was still alive…and like you, I really missed him, everytime I thought of him, especially when I hear the song “Don’t Fade Away”, I can’t help but cry…but I know that wherever they are, they are now happy and I know still watching us…One thing I learned, always say ‘I love you” to all the people you really care and love because you wouldn’t know if are still here tomorrow to say I love you to them….

  26. Dear Kenny,
    Congratulations for all the achievements despite your age. You’re an examplary to many people.
    I could relate to you. My father is currently lying in the bed dying in Tropicana Medical Centre from cancer that has spread to the entire brain. In addition to that, he has a collapsed lung complicated by pneumonia.
    As for your Gallstone. My sincere advice is to get it removed. There are able to be removed endoscopically, so no issues about scar. The problem may arise when then stone brushes agains the wall of the gall bladder and it may cause a condition called Cholecystitis, where there is infection and inflammation of the gall bladder. I would suggest you to get them done while you are young. There are so much that I wanted to share. I wanted to know how you cope with your father’s death, or while he was dying. Because I am not coping well. There is so much of family conflict within my life, and has been accused as been the blacksheep of the family. In my family, success is judged by how much you have in your bank account. They fail to understand that no matter how much you have, you can’t bring a single cent with you when you die.
    There are so much I wanted to share. But I am tired. I am tired of my life. I am tired of living. You have great prospect ahead of you. I have not even done 1/4 of the things you have done in your life.
    Anyway, it;s nice to read your blog. I sincerely enjoy reading it. Please take care. bye…

  27. Cant believe i have been reading your blog for like 6-7 years ?!! I remembered that you used to write a post for your dad every year T-T. And do take carez ! I believe you’ll get well soon.

  28. Can u imagined that I have been reading your blog for 5 years d?! Gosh….
    I remembered that everytime i read your blog, i will show my GF and fren(s) about the most touching post I ever read in ur blog. About ur papa and U^^
    And it’s true that ur lovely post about u n ur beloved papa is very touching and makes me drop tears.
    Take good care for yourself and All the best in ur life.

  29. i thought u showing us pic of ur pregnancy at first wtf.
    i guess the fortuneteller was right abt the small surgery.

  30. Hi Hung,
    You are caught in a rather depressed & frustrated circumstance. And, its normal for you to feel helpless now, especially when people nearest or dearest to you has conflict of perceptions of what’s life should be of.
    Mix more with your buddies/friends or any one that can somehow console you after pouring out your feelings.
    All I have to say is, you’ll see the glory in front of you, if you persist on what you desired for in your life.
    You may not be able to help much for your dad, but do take care of yourself, its the best ‘medicine’ you may grant to him, especially if you are your dad’s dearest.
    Cheers.

  31. I came across one of your posts where you mentioned that you visited Stephen Shum for 2nd time where he predicted that you might have a minor surgery in the future?

  32. Hi Kenny is been a long time din surf ur blog d (due to some further education matter). Honestly for past 2 or 3 years, this is the post that long waited…
    every year, it will make me touched…
    All the best in ur life^^

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