Appa passed away in the early morning hours of December 3, 2014, one month short of his 72 nd birthday. Well, he was 67 yrs old on the fateful night of brain hemorrhage, so I guess we lost the father we knew back then. I have been unable to bring myself to write anything about him since that past 3 ½ years. Each time I think of a blog post, my eyes would tear up, chest turn heavy and breathing would be constricted, sure signs of no blog post. This time I am ready to write about the night he left his physical body. On the night of December 2 nd , as per the routine I was awake until Appa was deep asleep. I called my sister around 11ish to update on him. He was constantly battling infection and was running temperature for the past few months. Appa’s neurosurgeon messaged me back asking to continue his medication and then I called it a night around 12:30am. My internal clock woke me up around 4:00am to check on him. When I opened my eyes, I
Winter 2012 to Summer 2013 were our acupuncture days. On most days our timing would match with this couple - the husband was diagnosed with some neuro degenerative disease (not Parkinsons) that severely reduced his speech and mobility. They were in their late forties. He (hence forth referred to as ‘Uncle’!)was a businessman with his sharp acumen still intact. He apparently guided their son in taking decisions in business by mere head nods. She was a fulltime caregiver doing her best in supporting her husband. We swapped stories and challenges when time permitted in between the treatment. One day we finished treatment and were waiting for the elevator at the same time. That was probably the first time Appa and the uncle were seeing each other. They both raised their hands to greet one another. Appa indicated the arrival of the elevator and uncle motioned his hand signifying we take it first since it would not hold two wheelchairs. They then waved goodbye