It began with a heart attack...

I'm back. But Angie and I came very close to cancelling our Japan/South Korea holiday cruise -- on the very day we were set to fly off to Tokyo-Narita. That was because my brother HT, 74, a stroke patient now living in a nursing home (I am his sole sibling in Singapore and I manage his personal matters) suffered a heart attack that afternoon and was taken to hospital.

We were uncertain about the medical prognosis and were told that further heart attacks could not be ruled out. We were to learn later in the week that HT's heart was left with 25 per cent efficiency. But his condition stabilised later in the day. He insisted that he would not want any invasive surgery and the hospital decided to keep him under observation, with appropriate medication, until he could be discharged and be returned to the nursing home. That would be the best case situation.

So cancelling the trip -- a long-planned vacation that also included Angie's mum and two aunties as well as two cousins -- meant we would be essentially on standby in case of the worst case situation That was when nephew TH -- not a medical doctor but someone with a prodigious store of medical knowledge -- stepped up and assured us he would take care of all necessary matters and that he would be making regular visits to the hospital to monitor HT's situation.

We also found out from our very helpful travel agent that all the ports of call in our itinerary had Customs facilities. It meant we could fly back from any of those places. Other nephews and nieces of HT in Singapore -- including my younger daughter Ly -- and their spouses said they too would be keeping watch over him. My elder daughter Li, a medical doctor in Sydney, would be arriving in a few days.

We flew off that night and were updated throughout our 10-day cruise, thanks to WhatsApp. As things turned out, HT suffered a second heart attack while in hospital but his condition stabilised sufficiently for him to be returned to the nursing home just days before Angie and I got home. We went to see him today, just after his lunch. He looked tired but could sit up on a chair to chat.

Looking back at the WhatsApp messages that were exchanged among HT's nephews and nieces and their spouses -- and Angie -- in that timeframe, I realised they contained a heartwarming story of love and caring, and humour too! The "transcript" appears tomorrow.