On the first day of Chinese New Year, while many of us were enjoying long-awaited reunion dinners with our loved ones, a family in Wuhan was facing the toughest challenge of their lives.
A female Wuhan resident shared a heart-wrenching tribute online, after she lost her mother in China’s ongoing coronavirus epidemic. Here’s her full post in Mandarin published by iFeng News.
We translate her powerful account below.
An unnamed female Wuhan resident begins her story by reflecting poignantly,
Mum has passed away. Everything is so surreal.
She recalls when the family tragedy first began — on the first day of Chinese New Year (25 Jan). Her mother had been infected with the coronavirus on 17 Jan after her lung surgery, despite not visiting the Huanan seafood market.
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The family had made the difficult decision of their father becoming the main caregiver for their mother, after she was diagnosed.
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She described her father as a loving husband who never left her mother’s side.
On the night of 24 Jan, while others were racing to leave before a city-wide lockdown, the narrator had driven to Hankou to get “10 bottles of immunoglobulin” for her dad — costs of which had risen to a hefty S$157.40 (￥800) per bottle.
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She ended up making it home right before midnight. When she checked her watch, she realised it was officially the Year of the Rat.
However, she observed that there was nothing festive about the city of Wuhan.
Staying optimistic, she called her brother to wish him ‘Happy New Year’ over the phone, musing that the new year wasn’t going to be that bad.
She had gotten the medication her father needed, her mother was going to be cared for, and her family would be together soon.
Sadly, this picture perfect family reunion was not meant to be.
On the day of her mother’s death, her father had asked his daughter to bring the medicine to the hospital.
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She wasn’t allowed to meet face-to-face with her parents as they were kept in isolation — her father was diagnosed with the Wuhan coronavirus shortly after her mother.
Her father then broke the news that no child ever wants to hear,
Mum might not make it.
According to him, her mother’s “organs were failing” and she was being given “emergency treatment”. The hopeful daughter texted her father only this,
She will make it. Mum has always been strong, have faith in her.
She later begged the hospital staff to save her mother, regardless of the cost.
In her words,
I can give up all I have. I don’t care how much money it will cost. Please save my mum with the best medicine & equipment. I can’t be without her.
After her desperate plea, she heard back from the hospital moments later.
The grieving daughter shared that she knew “it was all over” once the doctor formally introduced himself over the phone.
Next, the narrator found herself in the position of having to inform her brother of their mother’s passing.
Her brother was in a 3-day queue for a 2.30pm hospital appointment that afternoon. He also suspected that he had caught the Wuhan virus, but no hospital wished to admit him.
At first, she hid her mother’s worsening condition from him, saying,
I didn’t tell him about Mum. He loved Mum.
However, after her mother’s death had been confirmed, she felt that her brother deserved to know the truth.
She dialed his number and asked him to visit their mother in the hospital. He questioned if that was necessary, since he had been in the queue for a long time to see the doctor.
That was when she told him,
We don’t have our Mum anymore.
Her brother immediately broke down in tears, as she struggled to find the words to comfort him.
Despite their father’s concerns, the pair of siblings rushed to the hospital to bid their mother goodbye one last time.
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Within 30 minutes, the brother and sister were issued a certificate stating respiratory failure as the cause of death, before their mother’s body was placed in a body bag and taken immediately to a morgue.
The funeral parlour asked them for permission to “handle” the body, but didn’t allow the family to enter the premises as they “were full”.
Both of them decided to kneel in front of the car that was carrying their mother, paying their last respects there. They spotted other families in tears, doing the same.
She resolved not to lose anyone else to the virus, including her father.
After laying their mother’s body to rest, the pair met with their father — who “stayed far away” from them.
He had not let them near him since he was diagnosed, keeping his distance whenever they met, reprimanding her or asking them to leave if they came too close.
That night, her father handed all the codes to their debit cards, phone lines and insurance plans to her brother — sending long voice messages that brought both of them to tears.
The last thing she wanted was for her father to blame himself for their mother’s passing.
Now, the author shares that she continues to see her mother in everything that she does.
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Whether it’s the bottle of olive oil her mother made for her, or seeing her favourite hot & sour noodles at the supermarket.
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Her mother lives on in her memories, but it’s the simplest times they spent together as a family that tug at her heartstrings most.
There’s no doubt that this family’s lives will never be the same after the outbreak. This story is also a timely reminder of how some other families weren’t as lucky to have enjoyed a festive reunion this year.
We send our condolences and well-wishes to this family. And to all other patients of this health crisis, we wish you a swift recovery against all odds.
Although the shadow of a viral outbreak shrouds our gatherings this year, let us remember to treasure every minute we have with our loved ones. Stay safe, everyone.
Featured image adapted from News iFeng via The Newsmonger on Facebook.
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