Candle in the Wind

She is one of my oldest friends. We knew each other since we were 5 years old. That is more than 20 years ago. We were in the same school during kindergarten, we were also in the same class all the way to Form 6 and even end up in the same Uni doing the same degree. Talk about fate and destiny. We parted ways after graduation, me staying in KL and she went to Alor Star for a more peaceful life.



Anyway, my dear old friend beeped me early last year that she is getting married at last in December 2007 after 'pak to' for 4-5 years. To ensure I did show up ( I am a big prawn head), she regularly send me reminders of her impending nuptials. In fact she is the only one who did that. Touched by her sincerity I made it a point to attend her wedding and got a good ribbing from everyone as I was always absent in functions and gatherings. After that we all went on our merry ways and I thought the next time I hear from her will be pregnancy.

It's one of those artistic shots where no one looked into the camera..

When I bump into her last month, I never thought to hear that instead of a soon-to-be mother, she might very well be a soon-to-be widow. Her husband was diagnosed with Acute glomerulonephritis, in short we call this AGN. In layman terms, your white blood cell, in the process of trying to save your kidney from an infection, causes scar tissues on your urine filtering device. This disable your kidney from functioning properly. When friend's husband was diagnosed, it was already a tad too late, one of the kidney is shrinking and one is punctured. Dialysis was already in the horizon. The last we talked he seem to be in remission, prognosis although not better, it was not worse either. We were crossing our fingers.



Today, my best friend broad casted an email to us, that the husband is now in coma due to viral infection to the brain. I immediately called up and ask for details. The infection originated from the heart and move to the brain causing the brain to bengkak and bleed, encephalitis. The doctors drained the brain juice, now he is in ICU on life support. My dear friend has been told it can be anytime now as spots start to appear on his chest x ray. Embolism or internal bleeding?



I am never good at comforting people ( just ask my sister). I don't know where to start. Words like "hang in there.." or "don't think too much.." or " he will be alright.." seems so trivial and loose. I can only asked her about the conditions and the prognosis and urge her to talk to the husband. They said coma patients can hear you. I don't know how to take away the desperation from her voice, nor the sob she tried to hide over the phone. I felt hopeless and inadequate. I can't even reassure her that all will be well because auto immune disease... there is basically no cure. At this very moment I feel that life perhaps is the most fragile thing in the world.

If God read blogs, I hope You can at least give them more time to be with each other. They are not even in their 1/2 year of marriage. God please give strength to my dear friend so that she can be brave through this storm and God please give the will-to-live to his husband. If You are feeling generous please also give him some stubbornness so that he is too stubborn-to-go just yet. And God please be with my friend even though she said she is ok, for those who said they are, need comfort the most.

Life sux sometimes...