Caught up with age

Saw the father for a brief moment today. A surprise visit. More of an impromptu call actually. He was here for a meeting, for a day.. at first we don't have the luxury of time, but I insisted..20 minutes is good enough for me, worth the drive..

As I watched him telling the stories of his life over a cup of jasmine tea, I was taken aback. Oh dear, have I not seen this man for a long time. He's my hero growing up.. and as I watched closer, I see lines, white hair.. age..

Age has caught up with him..

He's not getting younger.. suddenly I wanted to cry.. But it seemed inappropriate in relation to the topic that we were discussing. So I held back my tears. As his voice played in the background, the forefront of my mind went into another realm. How we got here..

How did we end up like this..

And then like a stretched elastic band, I was abruptly brought back to reality when he was telling me about my sisters.. my young sisters.. their life..

I smiled, tried to hide the hurt.. But it didn't really matter, those 20 minutes were precious.. I made a promise to myself that I will find the means to make this better. So I won't have any regrets in years to come..

xx