Dear grandpa,

I know you can't read this nor can you hear it if it was read to you. I do hope your current state is painless and eventually when they pull the plug, it will be painless. 

I just wanted to write this to thank you. My only regret is that I havven't said it enough to you when I had the chance, but I'll say it now. Broadly,I can say thank you for everything but more intimately, I'll detail it. 

Thank you for telling me stories while I came by you and Grandma on a Sunday for lunch. They were the highlights of my Sundays as a child and broadened my love for fiction. Thank you for feeding me some of those Sundays and commending me when I finished eating and then giving me ice cream or a popsicle for dessert. <3 Thank you for teaching me my times-tables especially my two times-tables. I remember you were proud when I could recite it flawlessly then you told me to learn the three times-tables. I was the only one who was in first year (I think that year) and knew my time-tables. Thank you for teaching me how to play cricket. I still remember the encouragement you gave me even when I wanted to give up because I couldn't hit the ball. You kept telling me wait for it and time it, till I'd perfected the shot and got really good at cricket. I rememeber being excited when I'd made the girl's team in primary school.

Thank you for trying to teach me to ride a bike. I simply could never get my balance on it. :$

Thank you for teaching me how to fish and catch crab. Those are some of the best memories I have. I will always treasure them. Thank you for learning how to play Monopoly with us and asking to play with us. Not many adults would have played with a bunch of 7 year olds. (I think) thanks for letting us cheat and laughing when we cheated then telling us to put it back <3 Thank you for praying for me when I couldn't sleep those rare nights I spent over by you and grandma. I always fell asleep immediately afterwards. 

Thank you for always being proud of my achievements. It's sad that my first exam as a med student happened the day you were taken into the hospital and I would never be able to tell you about it. You always told me I would do well, and I am glad you were around this long to see me grow up this much. 

Thank you for never forgettinng my birthday even though I forgot yours sometimes. :( 

Thank you for all the new year eve bbq's. Thank you for all the Eids. Thank you for always offering me food and something to drink. Thank you for letting me write my name in the wet cement when you were making a pavement thingy for grandma. Thank you for always climbing the fence to find the lost cricket balls. Thank you for picking and cutting coconut  for us and sometimes even scraping out the jelly to give us. Thank you for the many doubles runs we had in primary school. Thank you for those years you had dropped and picked us up from school. 

Mostly, thank you for loving me and nurturing me. I love you. 

Inna Lillahi wa inna ilaihi raji'un