I Remember, Doctor Samantha Koh.

A pink rose for Doctor Samantha Koh, to show my profound gratitude to her.

On the morning of 4th June, I received a call from a Doctor Samantha. She called my private home line. I picked up the phone and heard a somewhat familiar voice introducing, "Hello, I am Doctor Samantha. Are you Mr. Ding? Can you remember me?" The name rings a bell in my embedded memory. It was the 'only' doctor's name that appeared in a little notebook I kept beside my bed when I was hospitalised. That period was before my liver transplant on the 11th of July, 2024.

During the period before and after my transplant, Sue told me that I had a loss of memory. Some doctors suspected I had dementia. So, Sue and Debbie kept a little notebook on my bedside to remind me of my daily things to do and to give me words of encouragement. Also, I cannot remember all the happenings or recall the name of the doctors and staff who had attended to me.

In Daniel 6:22 - "And my God sent his angel and shut the lions mouths, so that they did not hurt me."

Later that day, I told Sue and Debbie about the call from Doctor Samantha. Both of them vividly remember Doctor Samantha Koh. Among the many doctors, specialists, and surgeons who had seen me, Sue and Debbie can only remember one name, "Doctor Samantha Koh." She was the "only" doctor who had interacted directly and reached out to Sue & Debbie during that period when they were deeply distressed and traumatised by my languishing condition and loss of memory.

Today, Doctor Samantha Koh can still remember me. And she called to check on me even though 11 months had past. She is now stationed at Sengkang General Hospital.

Here is my dedication to Doctor Samantha Koh:

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"When I languished in pain with my failing liver,

Every moment is like a tide retreating from the shore.

But you were there to tend the fractured light of the light house,

Creating a path through the darkness,

To keep me steering on the right course.

You became the compass my wife and daughter could clutch,

And now my adopted liver hums on borrowed time.

Thank you for helping me and my family to see the daybreak again."

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Since the end of April, when I started to wake up from my deep slump, I feel extremely grateful to the many people who have never abandoned me or given up hope on me. I feel a very deep sense of gratitude to them, and one of them is Doctor Samantha Koh.

Afternote : There was another person whom I have very deep memory and impression of is "Ann Chow." She was there all the time after my liver transplant. She was there every morning with the team of doctors, on their daily rounds. In my unwell state, I remembered she often whispered words of comfort and encouragement in my ear. I feel a deep sense of gratitude towards her.