Great Grandma Goes To Heaven

14 Feb 2006
Mum informed us that Grandma was not doing well. She'd had a minor stroke, didn't sleep at all on Sun nite, and had confided in the family maid that she would like to see my cousin who works in Melbourne.

The whole week was like a long-drawn-out drama, with daily pronouncements and guesses that today might be the day that Grandma would be leaving for a better place. She was semiconscious, bedridden, stopped eating, had to be fed glucose water by the teaspoon, and could not speak at all. Everyone was on call around the clock, taking turns to hang out by her bedside to read to her from the Bible, to sing her a song, to hold her hand.

On 22 Feb, she finally went home to the LORD, a great relief for the family, but also a time of grief and loss for her children and grandchildren.

In the midst of all the depressing uncertainty, it was a great comfort to have Beth around. Just 3.5 years old, she has already gone through the death of her paternal grandma. Besides, we make it a point to take her along to wake services of friends and church members, and to explain what has happened to the departed person and where he or she might have gone (easy enough if the person was a Christian). She has grown accustomed (if there is such a thing) to the language of illness and death, and is not averse to peering into the casket (perhaps she is too young to have developed any horror, repulsion or fear of death?).

A day or two before Grandma died, we brought Beth to say hello/goodbye. The first time this happened, Beth had been extremely reluctant to greet Great Grandma (GGM). This had usually been the case even when GGM was well and sitting in the living room in her wheelchair. Perhaps the young do not take well to those who have grown wrinkled and bony with age and illness. Perhaps Beth was terrified of GGM's shaky hands (caused by Parkinson's) and shrill voice insisting that she sing a song for GGM.

In any case, this time Beth not only consented to hold GGM's hand, she also sang to GGM in her winsome, slightly garbled fashion. Mum was touched, and praised Beth for her compassion.

Me - I was just so proud that my only child had not only done "the right thing" (which would score the highest possible marks in the family register), but had been used by God to reach out to a dying old lady who could barely register what was happening.

I like to think that though GGM could no longer speak, her spirit and soul were nevertheless comforted and blessed by the innocence of a little child God used to lead her homewards.