Our relatives visited Mom regularly but seldom in a big group.

Sometimes I would tell them to go in smaller groups in order not to alarm Mom, but after a while, we all accepted that she already knew.

(L-R) Uncle Yam Kok(Dad’s youngest brother), Auntie Chio Choon(Dad’s younger sister), cousin Angie and her husband Michael.

My brother-in-law David, my cousin Tinny, my sister Kay Har, and my Dad’s elder sister.

My nephew took all these images of our relatives in the family room at ward 48.

Some friends had told me to watch over him as he may not feel the full impact of his grandma’s passing until a few months later.

One told me, “Funerals and wakes are generally ‘fun’ for kids because they get to see a lot of relatives, but in 2-3 months, they may suddenly feel down.”

Mom is truly blessed with good neighbors and friends, who visit her regularly, at home and in hospital. Jovis(right) lives next door with her husband and young family and they have always looked out for Mom. On the other hand, Aunty 少华 is her breakfast kaki and I learned yesterday that they would share one yu-tiao, something she bought yesterday but Mom was too sick to eat. She reminded Mom, “你记得吗？ 我们每次一人一半(ji lang ji pua)？” Yesterday, when Aunty Sao Hua massaged Mom’s tummy, Mom said she was going to give birth soon and they all laughed non-stop.

I have to tell you more about Jovis and her husband HerberT. During Mom’s wake. they cooked several pots of desserts everyday so that we have some home-cooked food.

Jovis also wrote us a very very moving letter that brought me to tears.

Thank you neighbors.

I have always been fascinated by his perspective of the world. A lot of Boon Yi’s images were shot upward. I think he is trying to show us what Mom was seeing, from her point of view.

Often, all it took was Boon Yi to hold her hands.

I had a long chat about Mom’s situation with my nephew this morning. He understands and is very sad. Later he took my Leica and made some images of the gardens downstairs to cheer her up but she was too tired to appreciate them. Maybe later.