Day: February 23, 2022
‘GOODNESS ME! OUR OLD FRAGILE CHAIRMAN IS STILL ALIVE!’
‘GOODNESS ME! OUR OLD FRAGILE CHAIRMAN IS STILL ALIVE!’ (REAL LIFE STORY)
(4,353 words) Written by Ken Hua
Thursday, 5th July 2018
1st revision 28th August 2018
2nd revision 30th December 2018
It seems to us that misfortune never comes singly for our old fragile Chairman for the last few months’All of a sudden, another disaster happened to him. It was very early morning of Wednesday, 4th April 2018, our Chairman was feeling kind of short of breath, unsteady walking and chest pain. As a matter of fact, our Chairman was feeling kind of restless, hard to fall asleep and felt short of breath plus a little bit of chest pain starting at 10.00pm the night before. Our Chairman was trying to refrain from the pain in this quiet cold night and he told himself that: ‘Perhaps it was his depression caused the problem. If it were his usual health issue: depression, he could have handled accordingly.
As time dragged on, his condition was worsening, our Chairman and the Lady of the House looked at the clock clicked on, our Chairman was feeling more pain and pain. It was a little before 4.00am, our Chairman urged the Lady of the House to dial 000 for an ambulance.
‘Madam, I think you should call 000 for an ambulance because I think I have a heart attack.’
‘Mr. Chairman, please just take it easy. I think it is the depression that caused the problem and you had gone through this before. Just relax and the pain will go away.’
As time dragged on and on, the pain (shaky hands, short of breath and chest pain) has come to an unbearable stage and our Chairman could not stand any more. Then he and his Madam finally called 000 at 4.00am, Wednesday, 4th April 2018 to dispatch an ambulance to his house to rush him to Liverpool Hospital.
‘Mr. Chairman, just wonder what time you started having the pain?’
‘Paramedic Officers, since 10.00 o’clock last night.’
‘Oh dear! Your pain started at 10.00 o’clock last night and you wait until 4.00am the next morning. You should have called us at 10.00 o’clock last night instead 4.00 o’clock this morning. Things might not look good, Mr. Chairman.’
‘Officers, I hope everything would be okay with me and I also hope that my number is not up yet.’
Since our Chairman’s case was extremely urgent, he was rushed to Emergency Section immediately at 4.20am. At first he was placed in one of the wards for observation still hoping that his condition was not too bad. Oh dear! The real life threatening trauma stroke our old fragile Chairman at 6.00am when he was moaning with unbearable short of breath and chest pain. Seeing that the two nurses on duty immediately rushed our Chairman to the Emergency Room.
‘Mr. Chairman, just relax! You are experiencing a heart attack or maybe two heart attacks. Don’t worry! Everything is going to be okay. We will try our very best to help you, Mr. Chairman.’
There were two doctors (our Chairman presumed that they were cardiologists and two nurses in the Emergency Room. Although he was in great pain, he was still mentally alert however he was quite anxious and worried then he asked the doctors where was the Lady of the House because at this crucial moment, he needed her to be on his side to give him support and encouragement.
‘Doctors, I just wonder where the Lay of the House had gone because Ineed her to be on my side because my life is on the blink of life and death and if she comes late then I won’t see her for the last time in my life.’
‘Mr. Chairman, everything is going to be okay, we do this kind of surgery everyday. Maybe your madam got lost because Liverpool Hospital is a huge hospital and everybody could get lost.
Our Chairman’s case was quite urgent and about ten minutes later a gentleman, Chief Cardiologist appeared in front of our Chairman and he greeted our Chairman respectably:
Mr. Chairman, I am Professor Dominic Leung. I have heard a lot about you, Sir. You are the author of ‘The Two Boys and I.’ (book I & II) and I also visit your website: www.bloghuasungcang.wordpress.com (Ken’s Blog) to view some of your short humorous stories and real life stories and from the books, I learnt that you have been doing some volunteer work for Fairfield Rehabilitation Centre and Fairfield Mental Health Service for a number of years supporting the mentally ill people. In addition, you also do some volunteer work for the community at Villawood Senior Citizens’ Centre. You are just terrific, Sir! It is my great pleasure to meet you tonight, Mr. Chairman. Could I please shake your hands to show my respect before I am doing my homework on you?’
‘Professor Leung, it is my great honor to meet you Sir! The pleasure is all mine. You are just being humble, Sir.’
“Mr. Chairman, I am going to do my home work on you now. I am going to give you an injection and put you into sleep for one and a half hour. The surgery takes about that time. After the surgery, you will be transferred to the ward for recovery.
‘Professor Leung, can I ask you a question? Will there be any risk and am I going to be okay, Sir?
‘Mr. Chairman, everything is going to be fine because we do this sort of job every single day. Okay, I am going to put you to sleep now.’
The surgery actually took nearly two hours to complete and after the surgery, both the Lady of the House and the Diamond Boy wearing a big smile were standing next to our Chairman’s bed. Our Chairman looked calm and relaxed also wearing a big sweet smile and told them he was happy that he did it. Minutes later, the Diamond Boy was connecting on WECHAT with the Platinum Boy in Switzerland and the Platinum Girl living in Ireland, the remarkable lady originally came from Down Under and mother of the gorgeous twins.
‘Good day, Grandpa! Congratulations! This is Julia and my younger brother Johnny and Mummy from Ireland. You look great, Grandpa!’
‘My dear Julie & Johnny, please come closer to the camera, so that I can have a good look of my two gorgeous grandkids. I have been missing you guys, the Platinum Boy, the Platinum Girl especially two of you!
‘Grandpa, just takes it easy and relax so that you will recover from your sickness quicker.’
Upon listening this, our Chairman was thinking that kids these days are much smarter than our Chairman when he was a kid.’
‘Okay, Julie & Johnny, let me ask you something. How was your kindergarten going?’
‘Grandpa, very good! I came second in the mid term examand Johnny came 3rd.’
‘Julie & Johnny! Both of you are just my great grandchildren!’
‘Good day, Mr. Chairman! Congratulations! This is the Platinum Boy from Switzerland. How are you doing, Sir?’
‘Good morning, Platinum Boy and Good Morning, everybody! I am doing just fine. It is nice to talk with all you guys on the WECHAT today. Thanks tothe new technology nowadayskeeping in touch with our loved ones is just like at your finger tips even living thousands and thousand miles from each other. May God bless our family!
After lunch and a short nap, our Chairman was feeling relaxed and happy. He asked the Lady of the House.
‘Madam, is our next-door neighbor, Uncle Toby know that I was in hospital?’
‘Mr. Chairman, he will be here shortly. Just relax and take everything easy from now on. Our three children and I have told you millions of times however you never listen to us and as a matter of fact, we are getting quite sick of you. From now on, you must be as strong and determined like Uncle Toby, otherwise I will pack up and leave you behind and then you will know the consequence.’
‘Madam, I am terribly sorry that I haven’t been a strong-minded person like Uncle Toby, you and our three children! I promise from now on, I will improve my personality, always think positively and be strong-minded like you guys so that I can enjoy life more. I can see there is light at the end of the tunnel.
‘Mr. Chairman, you must keep your promise and become a better person!’
‘Trust me, Madam. I will keep my promise.’
About an hour later, Uncle Toby armed himself with e brunch of roses from ALDI Food Store. Accompaniedhim were his two beautiful granddaughters, Julie & Joanna.
Talking about Julie & Joanna, we have to mentiontheir father, Uncle Terry (Uncle Toby’s son-in-law), who plays quite a few sports such as running, basket ball, football and boxing etc. Uncle Terry has been training his daughters consistently and hopefully Julie & Joanna will be athletics representing Australia in the Olympic Games.
It is worthwhile to mention that Uncle Toby who has a very nice personality at his age (88) takes his two grandchildren to and fro school during the school terms. By the way, Uncle Toby has two boys and a girl and he is considered to be a great father, a great husband and a great grandfather. We would like to give him ‘a thumb’s up.’
‘Good day, Kenny, how are doing? Listen, Mr. Chairman, you are not getting sick again! I bring my two grandchildren to cheer you up too. You are just hopeless. Look at me, I am 88 and you are 75 but I haven’t been to the hospital in my entire life. Look at you! It seems to me that hospital is your second home. Excuse me, Kenny, I am only joking to cheer you up. She will be right, Mate! Don’t worry; be happy like me so that you won’t come to this place again. Listen, Kenny, don’t worry; be happy! Always think positively and you will be a happy and strong-minded person like me. I hope you will have a speedy recovery. After you are discharged from the hospital, I would like to invite you to be guest of honor for a few weeks, I will conduct a special training course to train you to become a optimistic and happy person like me, so that you will not visit the hospital every now and then.
‘Uncle Toby, you are really my good mate. Thank you so much for the offer. I think after the training, I will become a strong-minded and happy person like you. Thank you so kindly for your visit today and your visit means a lot to me. I promise that from now on, I must think positively, be strong-minded like you so that I can come along with you to the golf course playing golf with you.
‘That is the boy, Kenny! Cheer up and take it easy. Kenny, can I just mention about your depression. Depression is nothing. Please note that one of five people around the world experiences some sort of mental illness and some of them are more complicated than your case however they still carry on with their lives. They have to accept what they are and you too, you have to face it and fight against it. Kenny, don’t give in! She is right! Our Chairman was listening to Uncle Toby attentively and he wondered who had taught Uncle Toby this kind of theory.
After Uncle Toby’s visit, our Chairman’s mood lifted up and feeling quite happy. The Lady of the House and the Diamond Boy felt a little relieved because for the last few days, he was feeling kind of melancholy because he plunged into depression for no reasons and whenever he was feeling blue, we could hardly see him smile and sometimes wearing a long sad face.
‘Mr. Chairman, how are you feeling now after Uncle Toby’s visit?’
‘Madam, I am feeling a lot better now. I hope that my depression will disappear soon otherwise you guys worried and don’t feel good.’
‘Mr. Chairman, that is good. Just relaxed and take it easy. She will be right as Uncle Toby said.’
‘Madam, thank you so much for looking after me in my recent relapse and beyond many long years of care and encouragement including our three children that I always appreciate. Without you guys’ support, I would not have been in good shape like today!
‘No worry, you are very welcome! Listen, our next-door neighbor, who is the most talented King of Handymen in our neighborhood and his wife will visit you tomorrow afternoon. Please be ready and wear a big smile to welcome them.
The next day, it was the turn of the baldheaded King of Handymen and his wife in the neighborhood visited our old fragile respectable Chairman of Country Cottage. When the couple came to his bedside and said: ‘Mr. Chairman, we have been missing you! Our neighborhood can’t do without you! So cheer up, everything should be okay. Don’t worry; be happy! Don’t worry; tomorrow is another day.
Listen, Mr. Chairman, my older son, 14-year-old Peter has already started playing NSW Rugby League for the Parramatta Eel Junior.’
‘Congratulations, Mr. & Mrs. Koran! that quick already! We remember when you first moved into our neighborhood; your little 2-year-old son was crying every now and then and now he is playing football already. Time flies! He has grown up quickly and tall inherited from Mrs. Koran’s father. Your daughter, Mary is a very nice girl too. Congratulations! As the saying goes, ‘Good parents produce good children.
‘Mr. Koran, I like your baldhead. Does your Mrs. Put some oil and polishes your head every night before bedtime?’
Yes. Mr. Chairman, she does it every night.’
Upon hearing this, our Lady of the House and our Chairman were laughing happily and we think our respectable old fragile will get better soon.
We think that after the visit of Uncle Toby and the King of multitalented handyman, our Chairman feels about 50% better. Later in the afternoon, the Diamond Boy told our Chairman probably will be going home tomorrow afternoon after afternoon tea.
‘That is excellent! Our Chairman said ‘I am sick of staying in the hospital. It is too noisy most of the times and in addition, I have plunged into a minor depression and I prefer to stay home and have a good rest at home. Home, Sweet Home!
It seems to us that misfortune hasn’t come singly for our old fragile Chairman for the last few months. First, he experienced a medium heart attack in the very morning at 4.00am 4th April 2018. Whilst on the Ambulance, the two Paramedic Officers asked:
We think we should mention that our respectable Chairman has had quick temper and we are afraid to say that he has inherited this personality from his father however over the years, he has changed his quick temper personality into mild acceptable personality. Years and years ago, when he raised his voice, the voice was so loud that could be heard from our Governor General’s private residence, which is about 8.88 kilometres away from Country Cottage.
Everything was going well after his one medium heart attack and after the surgery. Prior to his discharge from the hospital, Professor Leung indicated that there was some blockage in our Chairman’s artillery and told him to make appointment to see him if everything was okay. On 24th May 2018 at 9.30am an angiogram was conducted. The program only last for a couple of hoursand the angiogram had found that our Chairman’s heart was functioning normal and he did not need a bypass operation and that is great relief for our old fragile Chairman and his family.
Things did not go on smoothly as our Chairman & his family would like to and it seems to him that ‘Misfortune hasn’t come singly for our Chairman for the last few months.’ In Mid-June, it seems that his health was going downhill. On 13-06-18 and beyond that, he was feeling kind of tiredness and lack of energy. In addition, he could not walk for a fair distance. It was midnight 12-06-2018, he found that his hands were shaking quite a lot and he could not walk steadily and a couple of times for some unknown reasons he could not hold his pea. He was feeling quite desperate, so he called the Diamond Boy living in Sydney, who just came back a trip to Coff Harbor for help.
We have to say that our Diamond Boy is a very good boy. Throughout the years, he has been very caring and supportive especially when our Chairman plunges into depression. It is worthwhile to mention that when our Chairman is in the middle of depression and he is feeling very low and it is the Diamond Boy based in Sydney who would call him twice daily to see how he is doing and give the latter support and encouragement that has been helpful. Our Chairman got three beautiful children, his older son, the Platinum Boy in Switzerland and his only daughter, the Platinum Girl and his two grandchildren, the gorgeous twins aged 5 in Ireland have been living overseas for more than 15 years now. No matter how far away they have traveled and how far they live thousands and thousand miles away from home, they still call ‘Australia’ Home that is where they originally came from.
Our Chairman would like to briefly mention that at the end of November 2017, the Gang of Four (the Platinum Boy, the Platinum Girl and the twins) made their way to Australia for a family reunion holiday for over a month and they were so thrilled to see each other and they enjoyed their holiday enormously. Last time they came home was December 2014 when the twins were only 4 months old but look at them now; they have grown up healthy cute little kids. We would say it is one of the most beautiful family reunion and holiday the family ever had! May God bless our Chairman’s family!
Now we would like to go to the main topic again. When our Chairman was admitted to Liverpool Hospital late afternoon on 13th June 2018 feeling very tired and restless. One of the doctors gave him a routine check up and told him that his heart was functioning quite normal. The next day he felt more tired, restless and depressed and he told himself that: ‘It seems to me that depression has struck again however at the very wrong time because how can an old fragile Chairman deal with two annoying health issues – heart condition and depression at the same time?’
Just like anybody else, he doesn’t like sickness such as my depression. He has suffered from depression since year 9 in Chinese Junior High School in his home city, Danang, Central Vietnam. For more details dealing with depression, he would like to please invite readers to read his real life story in coping with depression ‘My Life In Blue.’ that he posted on his website: www.bloghuasungcang.wordpress.com (Ken’s Blog) There is another real life story, ‘My Little Story.’ posted on his website some time ago.
Early December 2014, he finally realized his dream of publishing his first two books, ‘The Two Boys and I.’ (book I & II) with success. It seems to us that he has had some achievement. At the beginning he intended to publish his third book, ‘My Little Story.’ however after thinking carefully, he abandoned the plan, because selling books is a very hard task. Nowadays readers rarely buy books instead they go on line. Since he did not plan to publish his third book, instead he has been posting most of his real-life stories along with his short humorous stories on his website for readers’ viewing pleasure.
It seems to us that he must have been beating about the bush too much. If it were the case; he would like to ask readers’ apology. Okay, let’s us go to the maim story again. After the routine check up by the doctor at the Emergency Room and the doctor found that our Chairman was transferred to the recovery unit at level 1 at the hospital the next day. Since depression has struck again, his mood was quite low, he was restless and he could not sleep well throughout the nights. He did ask the nurse on duty whether he could have either sleeping tablet or tranquilizer so that he could have a good sleep but was refused by the nurse. A couple of days before he was discharged from the hospital, he was allowed to take tranquilizer so that he could have a better night sleep and settled his depression.
It is worthwhile to mention that during his stay in hospital, our Chairman has under taken a few scan tests to see if he had brain trauma and an ultra sound test to check his heart condition but all proven negative. It was a good finding that after the blood best, the Epilim (tablet for mood stabilizer) level was too high that caused his shaky hands and unsteady walking and the doctor had reduced the dose of Epilim. On the last day before he was discharged, the hospital had dispatched a psychiatrist to check on his mental condition. On this occasion, our Chairman recons that Australia has the best medical service in the world and thanks to this medical system, our Chairman’s health is manageable and under control. Thank you, Australia!
On this occasion, our Chairman would like to say a big ‘Thank you’ to Professor Dominic Leung and his team members in saving his life in the early morning of 4th April 2018 that his family and he always appreciate and will never forget his gratitude for the rest of their lives. On 3rd August 2018, our Chairman had the pleasure to see Professor Leung in person to follow up his heart condition and he had found that he has a very nice personality, easy going and he listens to his problem that really impressed our Chairman. By the way, Professor Leung was Australia of the Year 2014. Our Chairman recons Professor Leung must have been doing an exceptionally and tremendously outstanding job in his professional career. Congratulations & Well-done, Professor Leung!
As we have mentioned above, misfortunes have never come singly for the past four months for our old fragile Chairman. Early July 2018, in a moment of neglect, he had a fall in the laundry resulted him quite severe bleeding on his face and left foot immediately the Lady of the House took him to Villawood Medical Centre for treatment.
At first he thought that nothing was very serious besides the bleeding on his face and left however the most serious disaster stroke one week after the fall that was his back pain. As he was turning around on his bed while sleeping, he could feel the back pain so severe that he had to scream so loud and sharp that really scared the Lady of the House to death and on a few occasions the Lady of the House had to use all her guts that resulted her quite bad hip and back pain. We would say that his back pain was beyond words to describe, never in his entire life he had suffered such pain before.
During the very trauma of his back pain, our old poor fragile Chairman had to visit The I-MED Radiology and Western Nuclear Medicine to have the CT scan four times to check on his spine and they found that his spine bones were not broken except that the nerves were twisted that caused his severe back pain and he had to sleep on the sofa for over a month. That was not all, before the back-pain trauma, he had to deal with his itchy skin problem and swollen feet issue that also bothered him a great deal. It was lucky that his itchy skin has come to the final stage but he has to deal with his swollen feet. According to his family doctor, his feet would not be fully recovered because he had this issue for quite a while already. About three years ago, he had the issue of swollen feet and he took Chinese herbs to fix the problem and they worked however presently he had quite a few issues to deal with such as his condition, back pain and sometimes he has to deal with his depression as well, so he has to put the issue of taking Chinese herbs on hold.
Over the last four months’ trauma, thanks to his family support, the Lady of the House, his three children and friends & relatives especially the Lady of the House and the Diamond Boy based in Sydney. We would say that without their support, he might not survive the ordeal and he might not be alive. No matter what happens, life goes on and we would say that from this trauma, our Chairman has a few issues to learn such as maintaining a good diet, correct his bad eating habit plus he has to learn to have a strong mind and determination to deal with the challenges facing him. By the way, according to the Diamond Boy, our Chairman has a weak mind so that is the reason why he has got so many problems in life.
We think our Chairman would like to bring this special writing to a close and we wish him good luck and all the best for his future especially dealing with his health issues. May God bless you all, our Chairman & his family!
It has been our Chairman reporting from his private residence, Country Cottage, Sydney, Australia. He hopes that readers will enjoy this special writing as he has enjoyed writing it. Thank you.
Written by Ken Hua 5th July 2018
1st revision 28th August 2018
2nd revision 30th December 2018
Ken's Blog 