From a very young age, I already had a very close bond with my dad. I remember how we would do stuff together and chuckle endlessly. How he loved to hoist me in the air and sit me on his shoulders. I would feel so safe and happy to see the world from such height in the knowledge that I was secure in my father's grip.
I also remember how he disciplined me when I, seated at the back of the car, stealthily ate the sausages but left the bun intact while my parents watched their movie at the then Jurong Drive-In theater. What they say about the bond between a father and his daughter is true. At least for me and my dad.
Fathers and daughters have a natural bond. How about fathers-in-law? My dad-in-law is a man of strong character and few words. He is quite similar to my grandfather, a typical Asian dad whose love is not articulated but felt through his providence for the family in the order of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. I have never been close to him although I know he cares for me and is wonderful with my boy.
But I got to know him better through a family trip to Malaysia last December. It had not been planned that way but when our earlier plans for another trip went awry, we decided to still head to Seremban to visit his hometown and relatives. To me, it was a very special trip. It was more than a holiday; it was a journey of discovery and kinship. I got to know my dad-in-law better in these 4 days than in the 10 years I've lived with them.
I never knew that as a young man, he travelled to Singapore on the roof of the old rickety train braving the elements so many decades ago. I never knew he was slapped around by a Japanese soldier when he did not bow to the sentry guard during Japanese occupation. We had passed by the building where the incident took place and he pointed it out to me as a father would to his daughter. I was touched.
This Father's Day, I'm thinking of my dad who has gone home to the Lord. I know no one can replace him in my heart but a father's love is a father's love; whether they are in-laws or biological fathers, love has no boundaries. I understand that now.
I also remember how he disciplined me when I, seated at the back of the car, stealthily ate the sausages but left the bun intact while my parents watched their movie at the then Jurong Drive-In theater. What they say about the bond between a father and his daughter is true. At least for me and my dad.
Fathers and daughters have a natural bond. How about fathers-in-law? My dad-in-law is a man of strong character and few words. He is quite similar to my grandfather, a typical Asian dad whose love is not articulated but felt through his providence for the family in the order of Maslow's hierarchy of needs. I have never been close to him although I know he cares for me and is wonderful with my boy.
But I got to know him better through a family trip to Malaysia last December. It had not been planned that way but when our earlier plans for another trip went awry, we decided to still head to Seremban to visit his hometown and relatives. To me, it was a very special trip. It was more than a holiday; it was a journey of discovery and kinship. I got to know my dad-in-law better in these 4 days than in the 10 years I've lived with them.
I never knew that as a young man, he travelled to Singapore on the roof of the old rickety train braving the elements so many decades ago. I never knew he was slapped around by a Japanese soldier when he did not bow to the sentry guard during Japanese occupation. We had passed by the building where the incident took place and he pointed it out to me as a father would to his daughter. I was touched.
This Father's Day, I'm thinking of my dad who has gone home to the Lord. I know no one can replace him in my heart but a father's love is a father's love; whether they are in-laws or biological fathers, love has no boundaries. I understand that now.
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