What happened?
Standing outside his house, my grandfather noticed a fruit cart that set up shop near our house gates. A young man on a scooter, after drinking his tender coconut at the fruit seller, threw it towards the front of the house. My grandfather got annoyed and asked him not to throw rubbish outside our house. An argument erupted and my grandfather raised his hand and this stranger pushed him. My grandfather fell, and this man quickly got on his scooter and left. Thus began my grandfather's spiral of illness.
On Wednesday, December 19th he was admitted into Pushpagiri Hospital with a clot in his brain due to his fall. The doctors recommended that we NOT do a 4-hour cranial surgery as he would not be able to survive or recover from it. They were eventually able to localise the clot and conducted a keyhole surgery and scooped out the clot completely. Sadly, this exacerbated his weak lungs and had to be put on ventilator. They took him off ventilator on Friday, January 4th.
My dear darling grandfather, Mr. V.C. Thomas, passed away at 12.10pm on January 5th, 2013 in Pushpagiri Hospital, Thiruvalla, Kerala. His funeral was on January 8th and he was buried in his home town, Kalupara.
Standing outside his house, my grandfather noticed a fruit cart that set up shop near our house gates. A young man on a scooter, after drinking his tender coconut at the fruit seller, threw it towards the front of the house. My grandfather got annoyed and asked him not to throw rubbish outside our house. An argument erupted and my grandfather raised his hand and this stranger pushed him. My grandfather fell, and this man quickly got on his scooter and left. Thus began my grandfather's spiral of illness.
On Wednesday, December 19th he was admitted into Pushpagiri Hospital with a clot in his brain due to his fall. The doctors recommended that we NOT do a 4-hour cranial surgery as he would not be able to survive or recover from it. They were eventually able to localise the clot and conducted a keyhole surgery and scooped out the clot completely. Sadly, this exacerbated his weak lungs and had to be put on ventilator. They took him off ventilator on Friday, January 4th.
My dear darling grandfather, Mr. V.C. Thomas, passed away at 12.10pm on January 5th, 2013 in Pushpagiri Hospital, Thiruvalla, Kerala. His funeral was on January 8th and he was buried in his home town, Kalupara.
Here is a poem I had written for my dear Gapa. I wrote it to help gather all my thoughts, memories and love in one succinct piece of writing. This is not just my tribute to him, but a tribute to all the lives he had touched as well.
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To hear him tell one more tale of yesteryear,
Of Navy days, Aden, Gama and his banking career.
With the gift of the gab he could make any one laugh,
His quips, quick wit, and even repartee with his better half.
He could carry a tune with ease and pitch perfection,
Singing You Are My Sunshine and So Ja Rajkumari, all he needed was a brass section.
He has carried all his kids and grandkids with those strong, sturdy hands,
They’ve even carried a punch, carved wood and fixed door jams.
I remember him always standing upright and proud,
Commanding in his presence, without being too loud.
Woodwork became his passion,
And I would always sweep his workshop in a timely fashion.
To watch as he works his sandpaper across a new cane,
Or watching him measure a brand new frame.
Brut was always his distinct smell,
He would even spray it on his dear Mademoiselle.
With a strong will, he was honest and just,
Raising his darling three as a good father must.
We really missed you this Christmas,
But honestly, we are going to miss you our whole lifetime after this.
Fighting the good fight till thus far,
It gives me pride and love to know he was my grandpa.
