Today at the stroke of midnight, we will bid farewell to 2018 and welcome 2019. All over the world, there will be boisterous New Year’s Eve celebrations to welcome 2019 in style.
Many families I know are welcoming 2019 with either modest barbecue parties at home or modest dinners at seafood restuarants in the city.
If you are living alone and feeling anti-social, you can opt to welcome the brand new year quietly in your house and listen to the loud sound of the New Year’s fireworks or firecrackers going off in your vicinity or neighbourhood. That was how I welcomed the New Year aeons ago when I first left home to work in Kuching City.
If you are energetic and feeling excited about the New Year, you can opt to join the countdown wherever you are and be part of a memorable fun celebration.
Today, the last day of 2018, is a good day to reflect on the year. What makes it memorable or unforgettable for you? As for me, I will remember it for three specific reasons.
In January, I was lucky to be invited by Angkatan Zaman Mansang Sarawak (AZAM Sarawak) for a five-day study visit to Hanoi, Vietnam. I joined in my capacity as an AZAM board member.
The objective of the visit was to learn from the Institute of Policy and Strategey for Agriculture and Rural Development (IPSARD) and Centre for Sustainable Rural Development (SRD) on the development policies, initiatives and strategies Vietnam adopted to accelerate development sustainable in the country.
Members of the delegation comprised other AZAM board members, Sarawak Development Institute (SDI) members and secretariat from both organisations.
Personally, the visit was an eye-opener for me. I was greatly impressed by the food, progress and places I saw. It was my first visit to Vietnam and a memorable one. I hope to visit the country again as a tourist.
In early March, I lost my favourite aunt Catherine. One of my mother’s younger half-sister, she passed away suddenly in her double-storey terrraced house in Kota Samarahan a day after Chap Goh Mei, the 15th day and last day of the Chinese New Year
celebration.
She went to her bedroom to rest after complaining of chest pains at about 6pm. Meanwhile, in the kitchen, her husband proceeded to cut the fish they planned to have for dinner.
When he went into the bedroom to check on her one and half hours later, he was shocked and horrified to find that she had passed on.
According to her identity card, she was 70 years old. But I think aunt Catherine was around 65 because in the old days, many villagers did not have birth certificates and their parents forgot the actual years and days of their children’s births.
I have prayed for many good things to happen this year after welcoming the Chinese New Year. But the passing on of a beloved aunt was never on my list.
Aunt Catherine’s death reminds me once again how short life is and that I must live
passionately.
In October this year, my son took a bride, reminding me how fast time flew. It seems that we welcomed him into the world just yesterday and today, he is a fully grown man, ready to welcome his own family.
With the marriage and a new daughter-in-law, my family circle now is wider and merrier, especially during festivals.
Now that my son is living in his own house, I have learnt not to be too dependent on him anymore for simple chores at home.
Though it was not easy to do, I have learnt to let my son and the other children who used to live with me go to do their own things and live their own lives.
I must confess I experienced the empty nest syndrome for a while after all the children in my house came of age and left.
The empty nest syndrome refers to feelings of depression, sadness, and/or grief experienced by parents and caregivers after their children have grown up and left home.
Travels, deaths and marriages are all part of life. My visit to Hanoi, aunt Catherine’s death and my son’s marriage are the highlights of 2018 for me.
As we get ready to welcome 2019, my one and only New Year’s resolution is to live life to the fullest no matter what. What about you?
