Angels do not always have wings

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As a kid I had one big fear that my mother will die young. Looking back I should not have worried so much because my mother lived to ripe old age of 97! My mother also had some traumatic and pivotal moments and I admire her resilience to give the family such a stable and happy home.

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She had a moment when she nearly gave up on us. She found out that my father was unfaithful. I remember her sleepless nights looking out of window. One morning she accompanied me to school something she had never done before. My school was at top of hill. She did not come to my class with me. We said goodbye and she crossed road to take bus home (so I thought). Later that night she just burst out crying and in between her sobs she told my sister and I that she tried to kill herself by drowning. We cried too as we were so stunned and scared at the thought of mum dying. When she was more composed she told us that after she left me she took bus to the seaside.





 

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The beach was deserted

She took off her slippers and walked towards the sea. She was so hurt and wanted to end it all. As she approached the water she heard a man shouting out from behind her “Oi go home, go home!” in Hokkien dialect. He walked towards her holding her pair of slippers

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This man wore a thin black stripped light blue shirt and khaki trousers He dropped the slippers at her feet. She put her slippers on and when she looked up the man was nowhere to be seen. The whole stretch of beach was empty. I was not even 10 year old and it was so traumatic to have to process the whole episode

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My mum never thought of suicide ever again

I like to believe that angels do not always appear in white with wings!

That man who saved my mum must have been her guardian angel.