Those chance encounters. You’ll never know who you meet just once in your life—only to find out much later that that one chance is all you get before they pass away.

In memory of our friend, Mr. T.

By chance, I posted an advertisement on behalf of the meditation center late last year.

By chance, your sister saw it and passed on the contact details to you.

Just like that, by chance, you started meditation online. There is no physical center yet in your location.

That didn’t deter you, though.

We often saw you online then. I’ve seen how much your face brightened up—the more you discarded your stresses away in the meditation sessions.

You were always so encouraging and positive toward other meditation practitioners, too.

By chance, our meditation guide, B, decided to visit my hometown for the Lunar New Year. She rarely takes breaks.

By chance, your hometown is just 1.5 hours away from my hometown, and you have family members in my hometown.

By chance, just like that, the 3 of us all met in person during the Lunar New Year in Jan 2023—together with my mom and your sister.

During the short gathering, we got along well, even though it was our first time meeting in person. It was fun to eat and sightsee together. In your words, you’d say that it was very merry.😊

Ever since then, on and off, if you just needed a peer to talk about meditation, you would give me a short call.

Your sister, too, sometimes calls me.

Her daughter, your niece, is looking to pursue a degree in food science.

By chance, I work in the food industry and could share some insights about the industry.

Several months passed after our gathering. We saw fewer of you online.

Just a few weeks ago, I thought—I haven’t seen or heard from you for some time. I thought, if time and conditions permit, we may all gather again in my hometown. I was scheduled to be back for a week.

On the same day when I thought of you, your sister sent me a text message.

It read: Hi Rohene, my brother, Mr. T, passed away this morning due to COVID.

Warm tears streamed down my face. It was all so sudden.

By chance, I could make it for the funeral service. The flight that I’d booked much earlier to go back to my hometown was scheduled for the night, just before the funeral. Together with Mom, we made the drive the next morning to attend the funeral service.

As the band played Auld Lang Syne with bagpipes and drums as a final send-off, tears streamed down my face again.

We’ve only known you for a short 9 months. And I never expected I would have only 1 chance in my life to meet you in person.

It is a curious thing—how people’s paths intertwine and how short those encounters may be.

I am grateful for the chance to cross paths with you, even if it’s only for a short while. You are one of the sincerest people I know.

I am grateful for this chance encounter. 💛