Dearest Family and Friends

Thank you so much for taking the time to be here today to celebrate the life of a truly wonderful person, My Grandmother, Mary Yick Ching Fong.

Mama was a beloved Grandmother, Mother, Godmother, Aunt and Friend. I am sure that you are all here today because this amazing lady touched your lives in one way or another. I can’t begin to tell you about all the good things she must have done throughout her 90 years on earth but I can tell you what I thought of her and I hope that through my words, you will find a little something my grandma did that touched your hearts and your lives.

To me, Mama was the most beautiful, loving, caring and cutest person in the world. She always looked happy to me and would never fail bring a smile to my face.  She loved cooking and she loved playing mah-jong but most of all, she loved caring for others. That was her gift, she was the kindest soul in the world, adopting children like my mum, my Uncle Matt and Uncle Edwin. She treated them like her own and brought them up well. Nothing was ever too tough for her. As if that wasn’t enough, she had to deal with me next.

 

People have always said that I was Mama’s favourite Grandson. Something, I never thought myself worthy of. She probably loved me more because I needed to be loved more. Mama played a big part in my upbringing. I don’t think I was the easiest grandchild to bring up but Mama always made sure I was well taken care of.

 

In primary school, I went back to her house every day after school and there would always be a lovely meal of some of my favourite dishes prepared for me. She would always give me extra pocket money to spend probably in the hope that it would be saved or spent wisely, although they almost always ended up being spent on Dragonball cards and stickers. She would also always surprise me with a football that she would bring back from the beach on her daily morning walks. We would spend a lot of time together. We played cards together and watched TV together. I used to stay overnight at Mama’s house on Tuesdays and Fridays. On these days, Mama never had it easy, I would cry all though the night wanting to go home. She knew this but she would try to butter me up by buying toys for me at ToysRUs. I was being a brat but she never seemed to mind. She even made up tales of how the Curry pok man was the Momok man who was coming to catch me if I don’t go to sleep. Grandmother Tales.

 As I grew older and the years went by, I probably didn’t visit Mama as much as I should have. Something I really regret. Nevertheless, every time I did visit, she would still flash that lovely smile and say “Mark Teo” like she was so happy to see me. As usual, she would ask if I makan already, and would still give me some money. She really loved me and never stopped caring for me.

 I am sure that was the same for everyone else. There are probably moments in our lives where we shared really good times with Mama and there probably were times where we disagreed with her on some things. However, at the end of the day, I think that there was no doubting that Mama loved us all no matter what. She was just that kind of person.

I’m going to miss a lot about Mama. One of them is watching her eat. She always looked so adorable when she was eating. Don’t be deceived by her innocent face sometimes; she was very naughty and cheeky too. I remember my Jie Jie Pauline (who by the way was amazing in taking care of Mama while she was sick) she was always watching mama diet and what she ate. But little did she know that when her back was turned, Mama would make a dash for the good food especially durians which she loved.

Another thing I fondly remember is the last time I sat down for a game of Mahjong with Mama a few months ago. Along with my sister and my brother, we played a game of mah-jong with Mama. As usual, Mama was winning. She emphatically exclaimed, “You all don’t know how to play lah. Mama is the best!” Haha even while she was weak and not feeling well, she still had a sense of humour.

Even in her final days, she never stopped caring for all of us. You may already know, but on the day she died. She picked the one moment where everyone was having dinner outside to quietly pass on. She didn’t want any of us to bear the pain of seeing her go. She is just so wonderful and thoughtful.

I could go on all day about all the things my grandma was and all the things I miss about her but that would take a long time so I’m going to sum up.

Mama was an amazing woman who touched our lives in many ways. She was an incredible mother who took really good care of her children and through her example, her children become better parents who in turn pass on those skills to their children.  Her legacy lives on through us. She lived a full life and we should all be happy about that.

We will miss Mama greatly but I am sure that she is in a better place right now with God. She has joined Ah-Kong, and all her friends up there in heaven where there are probably playing mah-jong right now while looking down upon us and watching over us.

She may no longer be with us in person but we will always have the special moments we shared with her. Till we meet again one day Mama, I know you will always be watching over us. 

Goodbye Dearest Mama, I Love you and I will always miss you.

Your Loving Grandson,

Mark Teo