My uncle.

My uncle (my mum's brother) passed away last Friday after a long battle with cancer. During the last two months when he was at the hospice, we prayed that he would be relieved of his suffering. It wasn't that we had wanted him to leave us, but that it pained us to see him suffering in pain.

Still, the hospice was a haven for him compared to the hospital he was in. His needs were met and the nurses gave him his dignity back in his last moments on earth. There wasn't much the doctors nor nurses could do except to inject him with yet more doses of morphine to ease the pain. But still, they took care of him as much as they could, checking on him and ensuring he was comfortable.

I saw my uncle at the hospice about two weeks before he passed away. He was sleeping and breathing uncomfortably from his mouth. His throat was filled with phlegm that he found difficult to clear away. It hindered his breathing and brought discomfort to his breathing passage.

I don't know if he heard me when I called him, held his hands and told him I had come to visit him. I didn't want to wake him up in case it made him unnecessarily tired. But deep in me, I hoped he knew I was there, holding his hands to comfort him and tell him to not be afraid to go back to God.

My uncle was especially close to my family. Not having any children on his own, he took his nieces and nephews as his children. He had his own way of caring. And in not so many words, he showed his love for us. My brother and I never forgot how he got us a TV when ours was taken away, and how he would lend his us DVDs to keep us entertained. He loved music, and shared this with us every Chinese New Year when we visited him in his home. With a large projection screen in his small flat, it was really like watching a movie in a cinema!

My uncle was simple man with a kind heart. My mum told me once that went to find out how to send money to a family who was involved in an accident once. And he went all out just to ensure that was done. It's not that he's rich. He just has a heart of gold.

This Christmas, it would be different without my uncle. We would miss him for sure. But we are happy that he has been relieved of his pain. And perhaps, he is up there in heaven with God, looking down on us.