To Annie

I was among the hundreds of attendants at the Mass held yesterday in celebration of Miss Annie Liu’s retirement. It was a thanksgiving Mass, at which we expressed our sincere gratitude to God for having blessed Sacred Heart with a great teacher like her. 

Fr. Peter Chong’s sermon focused on Miss Liu’s selflessness and Christlikeness, for, like Jesus, who had sacrificed His life for our salvation, she had shared her life with her students through her long years of teaching. Following the Mass, a few friends were invited on stage to share about how they had got along with Miss Liu. From the two teachers and the student, we came to know about Miss Liu’s serious work attitude, her vitality in class presentation, her artistic talent and her caring concern for her students and those she worked with. Sister Yip, the current principal, and Sr. Franca and Sr. Dorothy, the ex-principals, also expressed their appreciation for her great sense of belonging, loyalty and integrity. If there had been time, the sharing could have gone on and on. The sharing brought down the house. Like all others, I clapped until my hands felt numb and nodded in agreement to what was said about Miss Liu. Inwardly, I kept saying, ‘That’s not all!’ Yes, there was a lot more we could have shared about her. 

To me, she is not merely Miss Liu. She is Annie, my dearest friend. We had been colleagues in Sacred Heart for more than a couple of decades. Even my resignation about twenty five years ago did not put an end to our working relationship, for we have been serving together as Sunday school teachers in Mong Ha Church since then. I had never before imagined myself teaching on Sunday, considering my tight work schedule for the rest of the week. I had even wondered aloud how Annie, with a greater workload than mine, could spare the time not only for Sunday school teaching but also for her service in several other religious communities. However, Annie had gradually convinced me, not with words, but with her own example that God will provide time so long as we are willing to serve Him. It was, in fact, under her influence that I got more and more involved in church work. I, therefore, owe her a lot for having turned me into an active church participant now. If not for her, I would still remain a lukewarm Catholic that I had been for years. 

More importantly, Annie has become almost a member of our family. She has shown her support with her presence on quite a number of our family occasions, both joyful and sad ones. She has a very good memory for birthdays and feast days and is always ready with timely delights and surprises for me and my daughter. She even reminds me of some important dates that I myself may have forgotten. And she is forever the sympathetic one, with whom we can entrust even our innermost hidden thoughts and feelings. I remember crying on her shoulders at my mother’s funeral. And, her visits to my sister in hospital can give her the most needed peace and consolation. She is, indeed, a loving family member to us.                                                                                                                 

I thank God that I have Annie for a friend. Now that she has retired, I pray God that she will start another stage of her life with confidence and happiness. May God also bless her with new inspirations and new challenges, allowing also time for fun and relaxation, of course.