22 October 2007

A Child Was Born


Eleven years ago today morn
A little child was born
So little was he
Weighed barely 1 kg

So early was he
Was to arrive only in January
But came in October
Making him a year older

A Malay woman passed him by
Possibly visiting a baby nearby
Commented "Bayi ini keci*"
Innocent remark though that may be

Though happy at his arrival
We worried for his survival
Told his chance was "not too good"
That kinda affected our mood

Friends and relatives dared not congratulate
What if there was a twist of fate?
There were no flowers or cards
But they must be praying in their hearts

Many hospital visits were made
Most days we were by his bed
At first he couldn't even be carried
Needed more time, couldn't be hurried

So many tubes attached to his body
Seeing him like this made us sorry
We felt his pain
Nearly drove us insane

Mum lovingly prepared EBM** for his food
We were told nothing else was as good
Brought it daily in a box that could chill
Which he consumed via his nostril!

Little by little, he grew steadily
We brought him home when he was 2 kg
After almost 3 months' stay
But the happiness was more than words could say

Today he's happy
And he's healthy
We're grateful as that's all we want
Happy Birthday, My Son

Mum, Dad and gor gor*** love you dearly, always.

Note:

* kecil (sometimes mispronounced as "keci") = Malay for "small"

** EBM = expressed breast milk

***gor gor = Cantonese for "elder brother"

18 comments:

Anonymous said...

Happy bithday to your son!!

Victor said...

Anonymous - Thank you so much for the well wishes.

Patricea Chow-Capodieci said...

It's not easy being parents! Even as I am only three and a half months pregnant, we feel the weight and responsibility of growing the child.

I hope your son understands the sacrifices you and your wife made to ensure his survival, and how lucky he is to have a loving family. Best wishes to you and your family.

Victor said...

Patricea - Congratulations! Glad to hear that you are soon to be a first-time mum. I believe you will soon discover that the joy and fulfilment of parenthood will far outweigh the small sacrifices that you have to make.

Anonymous said...

SO SWEET!!!!!!

I nearly teared at the last part... Really a sweet poem from a dad to a kid..

Does your son read ur blog? :p

Anonymous said...

Yes. I am reading it right now.

Anonymous said...

That's a wonderful poem, originally created for your son. Happy Birthday to your boy!

Victor said...

GNE - There you have it from the horse's mouth - my son reads my blog. Not only that, I just discovered that he also has a blog! But the 2 entries that he wrote so far are quite bo liao.

Victor said...

Tigerfish - Thank you very much for the compliment and the birthday wish. Actually, I anyhow write one. :p

Anonymous said...

Victor-Here's wishing your son many happy returns of the day and God bless.

Victor said...

Thank you, Stanley. May God bless you too.

Lam Chun See said...

Nice poem from proud dad no doubt. Nothing like a father's love and joy to bring out the creative juices eh.

Victor said...

Thanks Chun See.

Anonymous said...

you write poems like so easy

Best wishes to your family!

Victor said...

Fr - Thanks. I guess writing poems is like writing blog entries - when there's inspiration, it seems easy. However, I do get writer's block sometimes too.

Anonymous said...

Dear Victor,
So sorry I kam here late, but like the "last"fairy godmother I can still give him my wish right.... Hehe, first I wish your boy a Happy Belated Birthday and may all his dreams come true this year. May he grow to be a strong, kind, conscientious man like his dad.

Victor said...

Thanks FH. It's never too late to wish someone well. I'm glad to see you blog-hopping again. Hope life has returned to normalcy again for you.

victorkoo.jr. said...

The reason why I have 2 posts is that I cant load my 'asknlearn' blogpost entirely.