The other night, we get a phone call late at night. The call is from my wife’s brother, and he asks to speak to her. Within a few minutes, I know it can’t be good. My wife begins crying. Her nephew has been killed in a motorcycle accident. I know the kid and he was only 17 or 18 and a decent sort. Apparently he was riding with two other kids on a little 110cc motorbike and was hit by a truck. One of the kids is still in the hospital, status unknown, the other has a broken leg. The incident reminds me – any one of us can be gone in a split second.
She makes arrangements to go home to the south of Thailand. Hours later she buys her tickets; one for herself and another for our youngest son. Our eldest son stays with me. She is normally the one to handle their day-to-day activities and I’ve got to figure out everything while operating on very little sleep. He goes off to school, and my wife and other son catch the train. They’re now in the south while my son and I hold down the fort. We’re both missing them and the house feels empty.
I’ve spent the past few days watching Wimbledon. It’s on late here in Thailand and last night I stayed up until around 3 AM. I needed to wake up at 5 AM to get my son off to school. Next thing I know, he’s waking me up asking for my keys because the school bus is waiting for him outside. He’s seven years old and got up, brushed his teeth, ate breakfast, showered and got dressed by himself – thank Buddha.
I’m no longer used to a life of discipline where I must wake up at a certain time. I rarely wake up via an alarm clock, like most people I hate using one, and most of the time I just wake up whenever I wake up. Which is how I like it. It’s been nice spending time alone with my son but I’ll be glad when my wife and younger son are home. Hopefully, that will be in a few days.
I’m still trying to figure out my schedule for the next few weeks and my accommodation for the Olympics. Chris John is fighting Jackson Asiku – a fight I want very much to see – on July 26. On the same day, AJ Banal is fighting Rafael Concepcion in the Philippines. The day after, a short flight away, there’s another show, then on August 2nd, yet another.
My dilemma comes in which show to go to. I want to go to the Chris John fight, but the money won’t be nearly as much as I’ll make in the Philippines. Plus, I’m working on a piece about Burmese boxing and there’s a show on July 20. I really need to spend 3-4 weeks in Burma to finish the piece but I don’t know if this is possible.
By tomorrow I should know what I’m doing. For now, I’m going to watch Wimbledon – Federer vs. Ancic, and Nadal vs. Murray. Star Sports just showed the footwork of Federer in slow motion. Quite a few boxers could learn a thing or two from him – he’s extremely light on his feet.
Until later…
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