This one's for you, Shayne
Shayne is a friend I knew online sometime way back in 1998, while I was working part-time in an internet drop-in centre during the Poly vacation.
During those days in the centre, I had nothing much to do except 1. Switch on the lights 2. Switch on the computers 3. Sit down and start surfing the net. They were using SingTel Magix then and it was like THE FASTEST internet speed. You have to understand that most people used dial up back then, and I felt like I was in heaven with a job doing nothing but surfing (very fast) internet.
Back to Shayne... I am writing a post on him because he is a dear friend and because, he has passed away some months back and because, it was just his birthday some days ago. His passing on shocked me, as it did to many of his friends judging from the comments I saw on his Facebook... it seemed to have happened very suddenly, unexpectedly in his sleep.
I knew Shayne from a Christian Chat room. It was very common in those days to chat in chat rooms and IRC, I think people don't do that anymore. Anyway, it was fun talking to someone who is not Singaporean. Shayne lived in Ontario, Canada. We spent a lot of time talking those days... I cannot remember what we talked about but I know it was enjoyable.
Sometime later, we lost contact and once in a while (like once a year or every two-three years) I would hear from him. We have very few emails in-between and I gathered that a lot happened to him. Then he found my blog either here or ballwong and we started talking again. Then a few years ago, he disappeared again.
For those few years, I wondered how he was. I had this silly fear that something bad happened to him or he died. But suddenly in 2010, he appeared again and we kept in contact on Facebook. I introduced him to some Chinese movies and he loved it. But as I was constantly busy at work those days, I sometimes do not get to reply his Facebook messages...
And this is my regret to this day... I never replied his last message to me. I remembered seeing it popped up in the chat but i was too busy to reply at that moment.. and it slipped my mind. Months later, I found out he passed away.
I hope that wherever Shayne is right now, he is happy and at peace, safe in the arms of God.
Dear Shayne, I am sorry that I missed your last message. It is something that I have to live with... I know you are okay about it and you wouldn't mind because that's just how kind you are. I am grateful for the time that we had just to be friends.
I will miss you always. See you someday, old friend.
During those days in the centre, I had nothing much to do except 1. Switch on the lights 2. Switch on the computers 3. Sit down and start surfing the net. They were using SingTel Magix then and it was like THE FASTEST internet speed. You have to understand that most people used dial up back then, and I felt like I was in heaven with a job doing nothing but surfing (very fast) internet.
Back to Shayne... I am writing a post on him because he is a dear friend and because, he has passed away some months back and because, it was just his birthday some days ago. His passing on shocked me, as it did to many of his friends judging from the comments I saw on his Facebook... it seemed to have happened very suddenly, unexpectedly in his sleep.
I knew Shayne from a Christian Chat room. It was very common in those days to chat in chat rooms and IRC, I think people don't do that anymore. Anyway, it was fun talking to someone who is not Singaporean. Shayne lived in Ontario, Canada. We spent a lot of time talking those days... I cannot remember what we talked about but I know it was enjoyable.
Sometime later, we lost contact and once in a while (like once a year or every two-three years) I would hear from him. We have very few emails in-between and I gathered that a lot happened to him. Then he found my blog either here or ballwong and we started talking again. Then a few years ago, he disappeared again.
For those few years, I wondered how he was. I had this silly fear that something bad happened to him or he died. But suddenly in 2010, he appeared again and we kept in contact on Facebook. I introduced him to some Chinese movies and he loved it. But as I was constantly busy at work those days, I sometimes do not get to reply his Facebook messages...
And this is my regret to this day... I never replied his last message to me. I remembered seeing it popped up in the chat but i was too busy to reply at that moment.. and it slipped my mind. Months later, I found out he passed away.
I hope that wherever Shayne is right now, he is happy and at peace, safe in the arms of God.
Dear Shayne, I am sorry that I missed your last message. It is something that I have to live with... I know you are okay about it and you wouldn't mind because that's just how kind you are. I am grateful for the time that we had just to be friends.
I will miss you always. See you someday, old friend.