The life journey of a great woman

My mom in law (MIL) passed away on 5th February 2012 at 12:35am.  She has been a faithful follower of Christ all her life.  She has indeed fought the good fight, finished the race, and kept her faith till the end.


Koay Hock Tin, she was born on 9th October 1946 in Penang.  She was a teacher by profession.  She was the 3rd of five sisters.


The very first time I met my MIL was in 1999, soon after Andrew and I began our courtship.  My first impression: she was a kind, friendly and gentle lady.


It was not until Andrew and I moved to KL I began to know her better.  As soon as Andrew broke the news of him wanting to serve God fulltime to his parents, they counted it great joy for God's calling upon Andrew's life.  We stayed with my parents in law for the next couple of years while Andrew persued his degree in Seminari Theology Malaysia.


As a retiree, both of my parents in law should be in their golden years in which they enjoyed life.  Yet they gladly assisted us when their first grandchild, Elyse, was born.  Elyse was very close to her grandma as a result.  MIL pampered her a lot.


My MIL loved to cook.  Some of her signature dishes were Lo Mai Gai, Otak-otak, Nasi Kunyit, to name a few.  One should never underestimated her culinary skill.  I was only 38kg when I moved into their house.  Within a few months, my weight shoot up to 45kg, even my grandmom was impressed.  For years everyone in my family had been trying to fatten me up but failed.  My MIL has created a miracle in me! 

She also enjoyed baking.  Friends and church members could never resist her Cream Puff, Jam Tart (my personal favourite!!!) and many many more.  Many people have requested to buy from her, but she turned them down.  She did baking for leisure, not for profit.


She was very thrifty in terms of money.  She did not pamper herself with spa, manicure, pedicure or facial.  However, she gave generously to the poor, the needy and God's ministries.


My MIL extended her hand to those who need a listening ear.  She would listen intently and advised those who came to her.  She was a counsellor in the church and many have been ministered by her.  The numbers of lives she touched was clearly evident in the number of people who attended her wake & funeral services.


She gladly opened up her house for home fellowship and bible study.  Calling and visiting people, encouraging them to seek God - just to name some of the ministries she involved in.


One of her weakensses was worry.  But that drove her to bend her knee in prayer.  She prayed unceasingly for her children and her grandchildren.  Her faith in God was unwavering.


MIL was indeed a virtuous wife as described in Proverbs 31:10-31.

Since 2010, my MIL has experienced chest pain.  She notified her doctor when she went for her routine check up in UH, but was only given pain killer.  However, she began to experience dizziness and nausea late August 2011.  After much persuasion, my MIL went to Assunta for a thorough check up.  There and then, she was diagnosed with 4th Stage Lung Cancer in September 2011.


Apparently the cancer cells have spread to the brain, thus causing her to suffer from dizziness and nausea.  After the radiotherapy and with the help of the steroids, my MIL enjoyed her days with us as much as she could.  By end of December, her condition worsen.  She lost her eyesight and her speech became slurred.  Very often, she was frustrated of not being able to convey her thoughts to us.


My MIL did not complain nor murmured throughout her battle with cancer.  In fact, she was prepared to meet her Creator.  She was more than willing to be called home.


We admitted her to UH on 3rd February evening as she was unable to consume any food for that whole day.  The doctor prescribed morphine to ease her discomfort.  And finally she bid farewell to us 2 days later.  She passed away peacefully in her sleep.  That ended her journey on earth, but began her new life in Christ in a better place.