Our hometown is Huadu District, northern Guangzhou in Guangdong Province, where our family of five has shared many unforgettable times. It was also the place where Mom spent her last days and where she witnessed God’s grace.
Mom was born in 1958 and grew up in a regular rural family; throughout her life, she carried the virtues of typical country people, being modest, diligent, and frugal. After schools were reopened as New China began, she studied at Lantian Primary School and then at Chini Middle School. After graduating from junior high school, she first worked in the commune and brigade enterprise, then in a state-owned garment factory, and later became the workshop leader. At the age of 27, she married into a Christian family; her father-in-law was a preacher. It was under such circumstances that Mom came to faith and afterward brought the seeds of the gospel to her father, mother, and sister, as well as some other co-workers.
In 1995, Mom left the garment factory to take care of her two sons' studies. She then went to take up a job producing towels and quilts in an urbanized area and worked there until she retired; during this time, she never stopped worshipping and meeting in the church. Mom seldom thought for herself and was always busy taking care of the family. She remembered the birthdays and tastes of everyone in the family but not her own.
After Mom retired in 2013, she became a street vendor. In June 2020, Mom suddenly vomited and had pain in the stomach with no apparent cause. She went to the community hospital and was thought to have gastroenteritis; after taking some medicine, she no longer paid much attention to it. During the Chinese New Year of 2021, Mom vomited again and had a fever, while her stomach pain persisted. Later at the hospital, she was diagnosed as suffering from stage IV lung adenocarcinoma. As she was confirmed to have a gene mutation, she was eligible to receive targeted therapy, which may be effective for 18 months. So began Mom’s days of counting God's grace each week. Although each trip to the hospital was toilsome for her, she still felt very thankful to God.
Later on, Mom received chemotherapy at the local hospital; the treatment was somehow effective, and the tumor did not grow any larger. But by the end of 2022, she began to have trouble sleeping, would feel very sick at night, and had difficulty breathing. On March 8, 2023, after completing the first- and second-line treatment for lung cancer, Mom took her last breath and left this world, returning to her Heavenly Father.
After Mom became ill, she made an effort to change her daily habits; she spent more time in the evenings exercising and singing hymns in the square. During the time when she was ill, she tried her best to go to church every week as long as she had strength, and she even started serving in the choir. During chemotherapy, even though she knew it would be hard for her to be on stage again, she still copied down the hymns on paper, then sang along with the mobile phone to practice each song, before sending it to the choir leader.
Despite being in her 60s, she still learned to use livestreaming platforms such as WeChat and Tencent Meeting and participated in online meetings. When the choir formed a WeChat group to practice singing and she didn't know how to make recordings, she would ask her younger son to show her.
The book Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End mentions that: "Older people yearn for a door that can be locked, as they simply want to act according to their own wishes in the final stage of their lives." Throughout the ages, mothers have put everyone before themselves at all times. They really want to be with their family and take care of their loved ones until the very end; when the time comes that they themselves need to be taken care of, it may also mean that it is time for them to go. Whenever Mom picked up food to put in our bowls, she knew that it may be the last time. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 13:5: "[Love] does not dishonor others; it is not self-seeking; it is not easily angered; it keeps no record of wrongs." This is exactly a portrayal of Mom's life.
On the evening of March 7, 2023, when her younger son finished reading the Bible to her for the last time, the doctor said that Mom was disoriented, but she still said amen with much thankfulness. Despite being in the face of such illness, she still stayed encouraged and kept reminding herself to cherish every moment she had in this world.
- Translated by Joyce Leung
花都是我们的家乡，一座普通的广州北城市，我们一家五口，在那里度过了许多难忘的时光，母亲生命的最后时光，也是在那里度过的，这里也是她见证神恩典的地方。
我的母亲1958年出生，在一个普通的农村家庭长大，乡里淳朴的勤劳节俭也伴随着她的一生。自新中国恢复教学后，她先后在蓝田小学和赤坭中学就读，初中毕业后再到村大队企业工作，之后又在国企制衣厂上班，最后成为车间带班班长。27岁那年她嫁入一个基督化的家庭里，家公是传道人。也是在这样的环境下母亲信了主，之后她便将福音的种子带给了她的爸爸、妈妈、妹妹以及一些工友。
为了照顾两个儿子读书，她在1995年离开了制衣厂，来到城镇化的地区从事毛巾和被子的生产工作。就这样一直工作到退休，期间没有停止过崇拜和聚会。母亲一直很少为自己考虑，一直围着家人转，她会记得家里每个人的生日、喜好，唯独不记得自己的。
在母亲2013年退休后，她还会做点摆摊小买卖。2020年6月，母亲突然无明显诱因地呕吐和腹痛，到社区医院看病以为是肠胃炎，吃点药就没多理会。到了2021年春年期间，发烧并再次呕吐，腹痛不止，后送到医院后发现已是肺腺癌四期。确诊有基因突变，可以吃上靶向药，可能有18个月的作用。就这样，妈妈开始了每个星期数算主恩的日子。她虽然每次去医院都很辛苦，但还是很感谢神。
之后，母亲在本地医院进行化疗，还是有些用，肿瘤没有变大。但到了2022年年底，母亲开始睡不着，晚上很不舒服，呼吸很困难。2023年3月8日，母亲在完成肺癌一二线治疗后，吸完在世最后一口气，离开了这个世界，回到了天父的身边。
母亲患病后积极改变自己的生活习惯，晚上会多点时间到广场运动和唱赞美诗。母亲在患病期间只要还有力气，她每周都尽可能到教会聚会，并且开始了诗歌班的事奉。在化疗期间，即使她知道自己已经很难再上台了，她还是用笔抄写赞美诗，对着手机练好每一首歌再发给诗班长。
虽然60多岁，她还学会使用微信和腾讯会议，参加网络聚会。同时，诗歌班组织了微信群练唱，不懂怎么录音，她会请教小儿子如何使用。
在一本叫《最好的告别：关于衰老和死亡，你必须知道的常识》中说道：“老人渴求一扇能上锁的门，他们只是想在最后的阶段依照自己的意愿行事罢了。”从古到今，母亲都是一位只会考虑大家的人，她很想留在家人的身边，照顾她爱的人到最后，当她需要别人照顾的时候，或许就是她要离开的时候了。她每次都夹菜到我们的饭碗，其实她都知道这次可能是最后一次夹菜了。圣经说，“爱是不求自己的益处，不轻易发怒，不计算人的恶。”（林前13:5），这也是母亲一生的写照。
2023年3月7日晚上，小儿子读完了最后一次圣经给她听，医生说母亲已经神志不清了，但她还是感恩地说阿门。面对病痛，她也鼓励自己，要珍惜在世上的每一刻。
注：本文为特约/自由撰稿人文章，作者系广东一名基督徒。
生命中的恩典：母亲患癌期间的心路历程
Our hometown is Huadu District, northern Guangzhou in Guangdong Province, where our family of five has shared many unforgettable times. It was also the place where Mom spent her last days and where she witnessed God’s grace.
Mom was born in 1958 and grew up in a regular rural family; throughout her life, she carried the virtues of typical country people, being modest, diligent, and frugal. After schools were reopened as New China began, she studied at Lantian Primary School and then at Chini Middle School. After graduating from junior high school, she first worked in the commune and brigade enterprise, then in a state-owned garment factory, and later became the workshop leader. At the age of 27, she married into a Christian family; her father-in-law was a preacher. It was under such circumstances that Mom came to faith and afterward brought the seeds of the gospel to her father, mother, and sister, as well as some other co-workers.
In 1995, Mom left the garment factory to take care of her two sons' studies. She then went to take up a job producing towels and quilts in an urbanized area and worked there until she retired; during this time, she never stopped worshipping and meeting in the church. Mom seldom thought for herself and was always busy taking care of the family. She remembered the birthdays and tastes of everyone in the family but not her own.
After Mom retired in 2013, she became a street vendor. In June 2020, Mom suddenly vomited and had pain in the stomach with no apparent cause. She went to the community hospital and was thought to have gastroenteritis; after taking some medicine, she no longer paid much attention to it. During the Chinese New Year of 2021, Mom vomited again and had a fever, while her stomach pain persisted. Later at the hospital, she was diagnosed as suffering from stage IV lung adenocarcinoma. As she was confirmed to have a gene mutation, she was eligible to receive targeted therapy, which may be effective for 18 months. So began Mom’s days of counting God's grace each week. Although each trip to the hospital was toilsome for her, she still felt very thankful to God.
Later on, Mom received chemotherapy at the local hospital; the treatment was somehow effective, and the tumor did not grow any larger. But by the end of 2022, she began to have trouble sleeping, would feel very sick at night, and had difficulty breathing. On March 8, 2023, after completing the first- and second-line treatment for lung cancer, Mom took her last breath and left this world, returning to her Heavenly Father.
After Mom became ill, she made an effort to change her daily habits; she spent more time in the evenings exercising and singing hymns in the square. During the time when she was ill, she tried her best to go to church every week as long as she had strength, and she even started serving in the choir. During chemotherapy, even though she knew it would be hard for her to be on stage again, she still copied down the hymns on paper, then sang along with the mobile phone to practice each song, before sending it to the choir leader.
Despite being in her 60s, she still learned to use livestreaming platforms such as WeChat and Tencent Meeting and participated in online meetings. When the choir formed a WeChat group to practice singing and she didn't know how to make recordings, she would ask her younger son to show her.
The book Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End mentions that: "Older people yearn for a door that can be locked, as they simply want to act according to their own wishes in the final stage of their lives." Throughout the ages, mothers have put everyone before themselves at all times. They really want to be with their family and take care of their loved ones until the very end; when the time comes that they themselves need to be taken care of, it may also mean that it is time for them to go. Whenever Mom picked up food to put in our bowls, she knew that it may be the last time. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 13:5: "[Love] does not dishonor others; it is not self-seeking; it is not easily angered; it keeps no record of wrongs." This is exactly a portrayal of Mom's life.
On the evening of March 7, 2023, when her younger son finished reading the Bible to her for the last time, the doctor said that Mom was disoriented, but she still said amen with much thankfulness. Despite being in the face of such illness, she still stayed encouraged and kept reminding herself to cherish every moment she had in this world.
- Translated by Joyce Leung
My Mother's Life Journey During Her Cancer Days
