October
October comes around again.
A poignant month of juxtaposition
In October, the joyous birth of a friend so dear.
In October, the sorrow demise of a friend felt so deep
Between years spent from October to October, living busy in parallel worlds until we meet in PL.
Like ships docked in the same harbor, our exchanges were brief, yet authentic and funny. A fleeting moment of togetherness orchestrated by God’s hand.
Like slippers in a pair, we walked the corridors in PL, until the Lord called....in October.
Letting go on earth was hard to bear, but peace and joy reigned in heaven.
What’s left is bitter sweet memory etched in my mind. October comes around again.

Hey Adeline - you will always be missed. My NIE friend. Remember Premier 12. - Peter

See you in Heaven, Adeline!
For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, an house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. (2 Cor 5:1)

I call to mind your consistency n steadfastness
Visiting teachers on Teacher's Day, I was one of them
All the way to Pandan Gardens with Mabel
All the way to Bukit Batok to bless me with lunch n a lively chit chat
All the way to South Bridge Road for lunch with Vivien
Visiting Uncle SY n me at Pasir Ris with Mabel
The last earthly visit with Merly n Vivien in 2014

Yeah, Ade, you were faithful n I miss you.

However, I am happy to know you were married to a devoted guy, Allister, n lately, to realise his mother was a Tow, n that makes you both my nephew n niece. I am a Tow by default.

Ade, you are enjoying your music ministry in Heaven, huh?

All who love you miss you dearly, dearie.❤❤

Remembering your generosity and kindness of spirit.

Dear Miss Loh,

Been thinking of you since your birthday last week (blessed belated!), but held back cos .. there was today. I miss you so, so much - I still remember getting the news, at dinner at Din Tai Fung (nex!), two years ago and the shock I felt then. I remember uncontrollably crying for the entirety of the weekend heh :-/

Two years on, http://thir.st/blog/home-greatest-love/!

I decided everyone needed to know your story :')

Thankful that you are now Home with your greatest Love, and that we'll meet again on the other side of eternity in His time.

I miss you! x

Words cannot express how much I miss you. There’s a room in my heart that’s empty because you are not there. Thanks for the magical memories and for being such an inspiration to me.

You are so much a part of me, and i know i shall never be whole in this sense this side of eternity without you at my side... i would neither exchange nor forfeit the depth and intensity i feel even if it means pain in one form or another will always be an inevitability. Incomprehensible as it seems, it is in the very throes of this swirling milieu i experience the all-sufficiency of our Lord's grace, the sweet anointing of his abiding presence and his unfailing promises that hold my life together... just like how He has so often demonstrated in our lives here together. Like the apostle Paul i would rather glory in my infirmities so that the power of the risen Christ may tabernacle over me when i am at my lowest and weakest. I know you are more alive now than ever before without the encumbrance of mortality, even as you eagerly await the redemption of your corruptible body. Our vile bodies will be changed like unto his glorious body, never again to know decay or death. O death where is your sting, O grave where is your victory? But thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. By his one sacrifice for sins forever, he laid down his life in love for a lost humanity, and he presents us to God his Father "holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight" (Col 1.22) O the power of his finished work! O the riches of his grace!

Darling, i know your heart continues to yearn for precious friends & family who do not yet know the Lord to come to Him; Jesus says today: "... and him that comes to me I will in no wise cast out" (Jn 6.37) For whosoever shall call upon the name of Jesus shall be saved (Rom 10.13) God did not spare his Son, but delivered him up to the cross for us. He so loved us that He gave up his only Son whom He loved. He named his Son Jesus and his name means Salvation. Just come to Him. Just call upon His name. He will save you. He loves you dearly. No conditions attached. Jesus has fulfilled every condition for you to be accepted as a child of the Most High God. He has conquered sin, death and the grave. The work of redemption has been finished at the cross. Death has no power over Him. Through death He has destroyed the devil who had the power of death. Because He lives, we shall live also. He returns for his bride the church. That day is imminent. The dead in Christ shall rise first, summoned by the Resurrection & the Life himself, and we who are alive & remain shall also be changed. In a moment, in a twinkling of an eye. Even so come Lord Jesus!

Be exalted Lord in our midst today. Breathe your shalom peace into every heart.

Missing you, my first PL friend

Missing you, my first PL friend

Thinking of Ade,
beautiful angels arise
to music and songs

It’s been 2 years but time is intangible, friendships are forever and our souls, eternal. A matter of time before we meet again dear friend.

Miss you, Ade.
On a boat trip in Penang, boatman mentioned about oysters.
Your eyes lit up..."Mana? Ada?"... lol 

For some reason, I kept thinking about you this week.
Missing you Ms Loh.

Ad, for some reason, when I think of you, I only see the young girl that you were when we were at school together. You will always be the talented, young, beautiful, funny and healthy Ad that I know.

Happy birthday, Ms Loh. Thinking of you.

Dear Adeline, you're in heaven, and in my memory.

Parallel worlds

Time flies
A year has passed

Your choice is great
Heaven is perfect
Of milk and honey
Of joy and peace

Earth is fallen
By comparison
Of dirt and grim
Of pride and greed

In this great divide
Only God can see

For now
We live in parallel worlds
Until we meet again
My turn to cross over

Hi Ms Loh do you still remember me? My name is Merlynn you taught me and my class when I was in Sec 2 year 2014 how to play the angklung. Learning the angklung was never easy but I only managed to preserve and not to give up because you taught me and my classmates to keep trying. I remember how my classmates gave you a hard time trying to teach them because they were all so noisy. I felt sorry that you had to go through that. But what touched me was that you still managed to be patient and eventually got the class to work together whenever me or my classmates had disagreements. I am indeed truly grateful to you for letting me play a instrument on stage. Though I am saddened by your death and I still miss your music lessons I take comfort knowing that we would still see each other again when I go up to heaven. Rest in peace Ms Loh I will remember your songs and memories of you. I have now graduated from PLMGS I am Sec 4 class of 2016. You will be dearly missed. Missing your presence Ms Loh.
- Merlynn Koh

Dear Miss Loh
Thank you for being such a loving and caring teacher.
i miss you
Love Eunice

Miss you Ad. Your PL100 musical was a blast!

Shalom,
WL and YF

Dear Ms Loh,

How does time go by so quickly?
I suppose there is comfort in knowing that we will meet soon. I hope you are doing well and composing/singing lots of new songs... I want to hear them all! :)

Dear Miss Loh,

How has it already been a year? & yet, I can still remember how it was when I got the news over Facebook - the disbelief when I was at dinner with a friend, that translated into too much tears for a weekend haha. Time is a strange thing :p

Sometimes it's still hard to believe you are permanently missing on this side .. it helps to know we'll meet again :-) Not much more to say that I haven't already said in previous tributes, but oh, it brings me such great comfort & joy to know that you will get to meet some very precious people I've had the privilege of knowing (like J, my virtual friend; T, from church; & most recently Grandpa ..) and them - you. :-) Yay :')

Keep playing that harp in Heaven (& impress all of them lol.) !! xx

Much love,
Eudora :-)

Adeline was such a welcome expression of faith and love in our lives, our Singapore daughter. Because Jesus died for us and rose again for us, the eternal foundation for our faith, we look forward to that day when we are reunited in the Eternal Arms, Who holds us in His care. Allister, we cannot grasp what you have gone through. We praise the Lord that He brought you and Ad into our lives. Be assured of our continuing prayers. Love. Adrian & Lyn.

I miss you, Ad.

It's your birthday!

It didn't click fully at first, until I received the notification. I still miss you, so very much. We celebrated Founder's Day just a week ago, I was at the dinner :-) It would have been lovely if you were there too .. I think even as a young teenager I envisioned you emceeing for the dinner, cos .. who better than you? The void that your absence left feels a little smaller now, nonetheless it is still there.

As I type this, I am at my maternal grandfather's wake - he passed away on Monday. I wonder if you've met him in Heaven already - he's the old, tubby & food-loving one ;-)

I still miss you so very much.

"Miss Loh is no longer here - but that is only because she is in Heaven with Jesus!" - & I will always hold this close to my heart. Love <3 x

Eudora, 4B2 (class of 2007)

I missed you at the 100th anniversary Adeline
Mrs Smith

Dear Adeline, See you in heaven in the presence of our Lord Jesus Christ!

Happy Birthday Ad. Wherever you are, hope you are doing well.

Trigger
Memories so deep
Thoughts linger on
Fleeting moments
Of one so dear...

Suppressed tears
Inward flow
No one knows
How much I miss

Let time lapse
And healing begins
Happy for you
For in Christ
You rest.

Dearest Miss Loh,

I never expected to find myself back on this page - but I did, because I attended the musical this year and I was trying to explain to a non-PL friend what it meant to me. Inadequate as I was, I decided that showing her this page would be its own testimony. So I did.

I knew it would be hard going back for musical this year, but I couldn't miss something that has been such a part of my PL identity - one that I took part in as a student, & watched subsequent productions. But I also hesitated, because I knew it would be extremely bittersweet without you around. I ended up procrastinating so much, I got my tickets at the door. I'm so glad I went for it, though the bittersweetness of missing you feels so raw and fresh, again - argh.

I re-read the old tributes that streamed in shortly after your passing, and I think, half a lifetime later, I finally, finally understand - I hope it's not too late. But you see, as a student in PL I always found myself saying it's 'so easy' to appeal into PL. Many here speak of their interviews with you - I didn't even need one! All I did was submit an appeal letter, & you must have seen it, because I appealed through Choir. I had a place by Christmas Eve that year. Truly the best Christmas present, and a lifechanging one. But now I understand - it's because of your love for the school, your generosity to the girls (like me), that you would want to save them a space in a school that wasn't just 'school'. It was a place of love, refuge, warmth, music, God. This year in the midst of centennial celebrations, I affirm that it still is.

I wish you were still here, so that I could say the hello that I was too afraid to say 4 years ago, and was looking forward to paying back this time. That I could introduce my pastors' daughters in the primary section to you, when we came for Ebenezer Fair. And to proudly tell them about the amazing person you were - and that you were my teacher. It still makes me sad to realise future batches will never get to know the amazing person you were, a privilege & blessing I had had for three whole amazing years.

But for now - thank you, again. I could never say this enough, I think. For music, for all the non-academic skills & values you showed us (like, copying stuff from the whiteboard bcos handwritten stuff trains memory), but most of all, for never having favourites and truly exemplifying what it meant to see every student in God's eyes - including a wallflower like me.

The weekend after your passing, I shared about you in my church, when one of the sermons we had was about grieving with hope - from 1 Thessalonians. I thought it was so timely. Then I sang Spirit Wings, acapella, in front of the whole congregation - including the pastoral staff and elders. I wanted to request it for congregational singing, but it wasn't a familiar song, so I did the only thing I knew - I sang it! Solo, acapella & in front of what must have been two hundred people :D

I hope you were proud of me - Eudora, who couldn't even look you in the eye and was too scared of her own voice at Choir auditions in Sec 1, who hardly spoke up in class in front of her peers, grew up a little bit more that November Sunday. :')

I still miss you, so much.

love,
Eudora (4B2, 2007) x

We thought of you tonight as we dedicated the musical to you. Thank you for the beautiful music - it brought tears to my eyes knowing that these songs that you composed continue to inspire generations of girls. I suppose you must be so proud of us all from where you are now... We miss you every single day.
Thanks for helping me to see my life Through His Eyes. :)

Hi Ad

You and pa must be so happy in heaven. Pa wrote you a poem which I've just posted on his memorial site www.forevermissed.com/williamseah

http://www.forevermissed.com/williamseah#stories

I'm looking forward to PLMGS's musical "Created for His glory".

Adeline

Sweet rose out at sea
A silent prayer sends her home
To our Lord's embrace

Was thinking about you today when I felt down and felt like giving up on everything. But i remember that you believed in me when I didn't believe in myself. Missing you always

There's a quality of friendship
that's so deep and pure and strong,
It brings about the special peace
of knowing we belong,
For friends accept us as we are -
we don't have to pretend,
They see the good, ignore the bad,
and love us till the end,
They share our dreams, encourage us
until our worries lift -
And Ad is that special teasure of treasures,
and to me a special cherished gift.

Ad is an angel God sent to the world. There are so many things I want to thank her for, like when she played a Chinese soldier beside my Maoist Lady Macbeth character as part of my drama assessment at university. We went to look for costumes, practiced the lines and went for rehearsals. In drama as in life, she is the foil to my very flawed character. Ad was the sensible and patient one, and I, the off-tangent, impractical friend.

When I crashed her car in Melbourne, she told me not to worry, found the most reasonable workshop and accompanied me there. When assignments were due, she would wait patiently while my dot matrix printer coughed out my assignment and she would drive us in F1 style to make submission deadline by the skin of our teeth. In Singapore, this understanding between us carried on in how we met with marking deadlines. We messaged or called each other sometimes to ease the pain. So all our anxious moments were also always the most fun. Through all my trials and tribulations, her words have always been always encouraging, supportive and gentle.

Whenever hymns and carols are sung in harmony, Ad comes to mind also. In particular 'God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen'. We harmonized most perfectly for it. We both agreed that the bathroom in our Australian house had the best acoustics and we spent many happy hours singing inside it together. Singing in the bathroom took on a whole new meaning. It must have been most excruciating for her when we sang 'This Little of Mine' at her bedside yet she could not harmonize along with us. She did however open her beautiful, big, bright eyes in appreciation despite her tiredness. Those large, limpid eyes stayed beautiful.

I will miss my angel, my Ad during this period of separation. In my heart, in the hymns and in the hum-drum of life, she will always be thought of and her gentle voice continues to resound clearly in my head. Words like 'umbuja', 'you owe me a Coke', etc, are all Ad-isms which my children have also started to use.

I am very clear that this separation is but a temporary inconvenience because I believe that friends are friends forever, if the Lord's the Lord of them. So I look forward to seeing my dear friend once more. That is a comforting thought that I know my dear positive and patient Ad would have liked me to keep. There are no goodbyes, only, see you again, my friend!

How we will miss Adeline, yet look forward to seeing her again, whole and new beyond imagination. She touched our lives with music and laughter, a heart of gold, always giving of herself for others. The happiness of others was her happiness; their sorrows, her sorrows.

"Heavenly Father, Your ways are hard to understand, but we trust you for You always know what is best. We rest in You as Adeline does now; we by faith, she with clear sight in Your blest presence. Thank You for the glimmer of our eternal inheritance of which Adeline was a part. Thank you, heavenly Father, for Adeline."

I have few but vivid memories of you. I remember your Literature classes that were injected with overflowing passion. I remember your chirpy voice and how you would narrate our Crick Crack, Monkey text with explosive energy. You were always happy conducting classes.

Outside of the classroom, I remember your strong and stern presence during SYF auditions. I remember how my fingers trembled and how my gaze wavered whenever you stepped into the music room. I remember the expectations you set for our ensemble, it was tough meeting them, but you meant well. I remember your harsh but comforting criticism that modeled the way for my leadership. You were always happy in the harp room too.

I remember your undivided love for music. I remember how much I anticipated praise & worship/school events because we could sing the lovely compositions you wrote each year. I remember how you made me love PL a lot more than I would. You were the happiest when you sang your heart out for God's glory.

As reticent as you were on the outside, you had one of the warmest hearts inside. You were a woman of few words, but you spoke so much more through your music.
You have been a great blessing to PL and today, we grieve together to mourn the loss of someone so dear to the family.

A lady so full of strength and vigor whom I won't forget. Take care in Heaven and rest well in God's arms. You will be dearly missed.

"We are One, we are family, bound by his spirit and anchored in His love. We can climb any mountain or face any foe. We can run the race that's already won. Let us take this road together, united in hope. To shine through the darkness and find, we are one."

Dear Ms Loh,

So much have I learnt from you these past few days.

How you took the time and effort to really care about people - students, ex-students, teachers, even alumni and board members - and influenced and impacted their lives.

How you wrote and created the musicals in response to what you saw was not right in the world - the self-centredness and growing materialism.

How you taught many to love Language, Lit and the Arts. How you taught many to sing - from the diaphragm and not the throat.

How you were always pointing people to God as His faithful servant.

I'm glad I had a chance to thank you during Teachers' days. But I will still miss you.

But I know you are in no pain now, singing with angels. Thank you Ms Loh for your legacy and till we meet again in heaven.

A love so generous
A faith so strong
A life well lived
In God's love, belong

A talent so musical
Care so sincere
A friend so loyal
A soul so dear

Words so poetic
A spirit so fun
A teacher so devoted
A close confidante

Inspiring, creative
An infectious laugh
Selfless, witty
born to love

A void so big
Only God can fill
A grief so deep
Only He can heal

Teacher, mentor
classmate, friend
Loved by God
held to the end

Dear Ms Loh,

It has been a few days since you have left us.

Thank you for being such a wonderful and inspiring teacher. You are someone that I do look up to as GOD has given you such a wonderful personality and also blessed you with many gifts.

I remembered you taught me Literature and also Music. During our Literature class, in order to help us to understand Julius Caesar, you made us read the text aloud and explain to us the meaning of the text line by line. Though we were not good with our harmonica, you encouraged us to learn and taught us the right technique in playing the harmonica. You could even tell who was playing a wrong note!

I also remembered the musical "The Great I am". As I was still young in my faith, this musical helped me to understand the bible better and encouraged me to draw closer to GOD. I could feel the love of the Father has for me through this musical.

Your passion for music, Literature and people has inspired many and some have even followed your footsteps. Thank you for all the effort you have put in in the musicals. Though the musicals will not be the same without you, I believe GOD will still give inspiration and ideas to those who are taking over.

I am saddened about your passing but I know that I will see you in heaven one day. Rest well in the arms of Jesus. May the comfort of the LORD be upon your loved ones.

Away, far beyond Jordan,
We'll meet in that land
Oh, won't it be grand!
Away far beyond Jordan
We'll meet in that beautiful land.
If you get there before I do,
Look out for me, for I'm coming too.
Away, far beyond Jordan,
We'll meet in that beautiful land.

Hi dear Ad..

God periodically brought you to my mind in the past 2 years while you were resting at home, prompting me to either msg you or pray for you.. I felt the immediate pain when your news came... This pain is still raw..

I never got around to tell you:-

Thank you for those good words put in, to my then-colleague for me, while I was at another sch. You never knew, because of what you said, I have had an easier time adjusting to the new environment.

Thank you for visiting when my mum passed away.. even though we were not particularly close, and had not seen each other for quite some time then. I appreciated your coming and was truly touched by your concern.

Thank you for receiving me with grace and kindness, when our paths crossed once again in my return to PL.. It is my regret that we never had much chance to catch up. I have always wanted to tell you how grateful I am to God because of you.

You have impacted me in more ways than you had ever known. Through you, I have learnt what it means to love God more; and to love people more - the two greatest commandments of God.. You have certainly inspired me, to want to live a purpose-driven, godly life in my days ahead..

Farewell dear Ad, I will remember you.. Your beautiful singing, your beautiful playing of the piano, your beautiful soul. In His love, always.

Dear Miss Loh,
Thanks for inspiring me,
Thanks for pushing me to be a better person,
Thanks for caring and understanding,
Thanks for showing me how to appreciate life to the fullest.
Thanks for life lessons.
You are a great person, it was an honour to be part of your lit class.

Chalk and cheese
Young vs Old
Music vs Science
Right brainer vs Left Brainer
The great divide...

Yet Opposites attract
Like fuel to oxygen
The Spark of life
Explode in mutual respect
Of each other's craft

Of random understanding
In misunderstood SEM
With tails behind our backs
We smile through adversity

Of deep appreciation
In food, fun, friendship and family
With joyous madness and laughter
We sail through life

Different, different in many ways
but the same LORD we worship
Hard to let go before 10.48
Clinging onto Hope on earth

But God's ways are higher than ours
For the legacy you leave
Is the LORD's work you complete
For the healing we prayed
Is already completed in heaven.

We will meet in heaven.
Rest in peace, dear friend.

Dear Ms Loh,
Though I was never taught by you, I will always remember you at morning assemblies/in the hall singing worship songs and the songs were always so heartfelt and beautiful. Even though its been almost 3 years since I've graduated, I can still remember the theme songs you wrote, the melody and lyrics by heart and from time to time, they really bring much necessary comfort. Thank you for all your contributions to PL and playing a role in many of the PL lites lives. I am thankful that I got the chance to have been a PL lite growing up praising God with the music you wrote. Rest in peace Ms Loh. You will be dearly missed.

Dear Ms Loh,

Thank you for your years of dedication and love for your students. You've never failed to care for us and made sure we are in great hands in character building and love. You've taught us what it means to love, care and work hard.

You're forever loved and remembered. 

No amount of gratitude and thankfulness can express but thank you thank you thank you always.

Rest in peace my teacher, my friend, my sister.

Hi Miss Loh,

It's been a really long while since I last saw you - about 7 years in fact. Although you never taught me in class, I remember you from being a part of the PL musical in my first year of school. I remember the love that poured out of you when you played the piano, and being so entranced and moved by the songs you created. I remember your encouragements with our singing, and your belief in us.

The PL musical was one of the reasons why I felt something in me moved to know God better - thank you for creating such beautiful things that moved people. I can tell that that you have done much more for many others too, and I believe God is incredibly happy to welcome you back home. Rest in peace, Miss Loh!

Lianhe Wanbao's Article on Adeline Loh - http://www.wanbao.com.sg/local/story20151031-67419#local

Translation: Talented teacher gave her whole life to PLMGS. She wrote songs, composed music and produced 4 musicals. 

Adeline spent 29 years in PLMGS with 10 years as a student.
Every 4 years, she would produce a musical, with the next musical due next year. Unfortunately she passed on before it was completed. A memorial website has been set up by alumni for friends and students to pay tribute.

Adeline teaches English, literature and music. She has made great contributions to the aesthetics department.
Each musical would involve more than 100 students. Besides coming up with the script, Adeline would compose songs and music that leaves deep memories. Even as she battles with cancer, she was still working with other teachers on the musical due next year. Receiving text messages from her on ideas and suggestions were frequent.

Adeline has also made positive impact on the lives of many students. Many tributes paid to her expresses great loss of a friend, an inspiration, a pillar of support, an unwavering force towards the school and students and that her laughter, wit, creativity and selflessness will be greatly missed.

A student also shared on how Adeline has inspired her to be a teacher. Many students had also uploaded songs composed by Adeline onto the memorial website.
Classes by Adeline were always fun. Students would look forward to her next class.

Adeline's niece also shared that it was a dream come true to work alongside her as a teacher.
Another student gave tribute to Adeline for never giving up on her as she struggles with English. Adeline's encouragement has helped the student to improve her English.

You will always be missed, Adeline. Such great loss for not just PLMGS, but MOE.

Shocked to hear that she is not here anymore well thank you miss Loh for everything go and make a beautiful sound in heaven remember you used to play piano going miss that . Rest in peace