Reflection on Father's Day

I was really touched by the SMS I received from my daughter who is studying in Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman wishing me a 'Happy Father's Day'.

Today is Father's Day and I would like to wish fathers all over the world a Happy Father's Day.

On this day, let us ponder whether we have done our part to be a good father. I could not forget the days I spent with my wife taking care of Yee Khai, my eldest son in Sungai Petani 30 years ago. We had to wake up during the wee hours to tend to our bundle of joy when he kept crying. Once, we had a fright of our lives when he choked after my wife had finished feeding him with milk. We were desperate and did not know what to do. Luckily, we rented a house whose owner had a daughter who was a nurse. She quickly came to our help. Guat Lee (the nurse's name) simply grabbed our baby by the legs and put him upside down. Then she tapped him on the shoulder and he began to cry again. We thanked her profusely. Later when the same thing happened again, we knew what to do.

As a father, we have to listen to our sons or daughters to see what problems they face and try to help them as best as we can. As I was a teacher, guiding them with their studies posed no problems to me. I bought English story books for all three of them and they had no problems with English.

My elder son sat with me when I was in front of the computer. He learnt fast and before long, he could use the computer like an adult.

My hope now is for each of them to get a good job and live happily.