Another blog by Boh Tong the ex- SIA cabin crew: Cancer
Showing posts with label Cancer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Cancer. Show all posts

Friday, December 30, 2016

A dying friend, a source of inspiration

I went to see an ex-chief steward who is dying of cancer. The cancer has spread all over his body. Even when the cancer was first detected, he refused treatment. To me, he is a strong man who is not afraid of dying. Even though he is now in great pain, he told me the whole thing is "God's will". I admire his guts.
I bought him 2 bottles of his favorite drink, beer. He down it within 30 minutes. Next thing he wanted was a can of coke with plenty of ice and I got it for him. We were sitting in a coffee shop near his home.
We talked about the good old times, our flying days. He has retired 13 years ago and now is in his late 60s.
He is the source of encouragement. Whenever I feel down, I always think of what this ex-chief steward said. He is dying and I am still healthy and why shouldn't I feel happy or at least be grateful to God? So, meeting and chatting with this dying friend changes my philosophy of life.
We are entering into a new year, 2017 with good health and lacking in nothing, materially speaking. Therefore, why shouldn't we enjoy life and live to the fullest?

Saturday, March 12, 2016

We met for old times' sake

The ex chief steward (Alex,not his real name) who is dying of cancer and I met 2 days ago. One of his wishes was to meet up with me for old times' sake. At stage 4 of the prostate cancer, he was told by his doctors he had between 2 to 3 years to live. Currently he is undergoing chemotherapy. He is also taking Chinese herbs recommended by his friend.
We met at a coffee shop near his home. While he does not smoke, he still enjoys his beer. I bought him 2 bottles of Tiger Beer while I had a Milo drink.
Alex looked cheerful despite of his condition. He hasn't lost weight since I saw him sometime ago (before he had cancer then). He told me he had initially lost a lot of weight when he was first diagnosed with cancer. He had no doubt lost some of his hair. Nevertheless, Alex was in high spirit when we met.
We talked about old times. Alex used to work with me on the flights. He was a good worker as far as I know. However, to many crew, he was not enthusiastic about his job. He needed motivation and that was where I came in. With me, he would go that extra mile.
Alex told me a story how he found some cash and a good luck charm (piece of small cloth) in Japan many years ago. The cash came in the form of a few pieces of the Japanese 10,000 Yen (equivalent of S$120 per 10,000 Yen) and that cloth. His luck became real good and whatever he touched it turned to 'Gold" he told me. He gambled and won lots of money. He even believed that the lady in his life was a result of that lucky charm. He was relatively rich as a steward and even owned 2 properties.
However, one day he carelessly misplaced his lucky charm and that was the end of his fortune. He started to lose money in gambling and not long after, his lovely wife filed for a divorce. Now he has only a maximum of 3 years to live.
I was with Alex for about 3 hours and we also talked about other things too. Then came a lady whom Alex introduced to me as his partner. She was much younger than him and a nice lady too. She said she would usually spend time with Alex after leaving her work place in the evening. On that note, after getting her a drink, I left them.