Cindy Leung

Humbleness, perseverance and strength are words that come to mind when I think of aunt Cindy. She navigated life her own way yet with a deeply rooted set of principles and values. My personal favourite memory of aunty Cindy and Paul is when they came to visit me in Kingston in my last year of study in 2004. They stayed with me, in my student flat I was sharing with my other classmates. It was such a privilege to spend so much time with her and Paul and see such a different side of her. She was genuinely delighted to go back memory lane and re-visit her carefree university days. She had this child-like joy and excitement that I had rarely seen. It was indeed a fun adventure, seeing her determination to find her old favourite hangouts based on small clues from her vague recollections of at least twenty years ago. Sneaking into her old dorm, knocking door to door to try to find her old room based on the vantage point of a certain tree from the window. Or trying to find the location of the old psychiatry library tucked away in a building which no longer had any affiliation with that department. We would eventually find all these places through her own sheer perseverance and determination despite my requests to give up. Watching her reminisce as she looked through all the old yearbooks to find familiar faces she lost touch with, showed how much she cherished those memories. She shared that those years were some of her happiest. She was a deeply humble person, rarely sharing any of her accomplishments or even her son's academic successes. I remember on a few occasions, random friends of grannie would find out she was a physiotherapist, and they would ask for her opinion on whatever health condition they had, and I recall she would know exactly what could be wrong and the type of treatment they needed. Without a doubt I suspected she was likely one of the top experts in her profession, yet again maybe i would never know. She was someone who seemed very little consumed by our world or trends or social norms. On some occasions, I would have a little giggle when my dad would tease her about her wardrobe choice but she would be having the last laugh now as her vintage bohemian style is quite the fad now. It was so refreshing indeed to see her live her life her own way with little concern over what others thought of her, yet she had her own deep sense of convictions. My deepest thoughts, prayers and condolences to Paul, losing his mother and uncle Simon, losing his beloved wife. May god grant you comfort in these times. May you both always know how much you were loved and always be loved by her.