A Great Friend and Great Competitor

First of all, i would like to thank ts for creating this blog to give us this chance to leave our messages and remember what a great guy EJ had been.

I got to know EJ during BMT as he was the buddy of my best friend. I remember (actually i forgot but EJ kept reminding me now and then) that the first time we talk was when i went to look for my friend and he asked me to help him adjust his helmet neting. Apparently, i didn't do a great job which also caused him to remember me...haha...

We got posted to the same company in SISPEC and the same unit after that. We would encourage each other during the tough training then and i recalled he always had a picture of Debbie with him even during training. I would also teased him about how unmanly that was but in my heart, i envy him for having such a good and caring gf.

However, we only really got closer to each other during the uni days as we were in the course and stayed near each other in hall. His BMT buddy was also my roomie then and hence, we often hang out together to study and eat. I remember ts and i beat him in our sem 1 exams results and he was very sad. However, a true competitor, he worked extra hard and make sure he caught up with us the following sem and then he eventually beat us all by getting 1st class.

He had always been very fit, setting the record of chin-ups in SISPEC, doing 1 hand chin-up, doing diving etc... Which makes the matter in which he died even more unbelievable and hard to take... He would encourage me and spend time to do chin-up with me during BMT as i couldn't achieve the required standard. He was not a very strong runner during Uni. When we go for runs around the school at night, i would beat him. However, he would train hard and beat me after that.

EJ was there when i got together with my current gf. I recall seeking his advices because of his loving (sometimes mushy) relationship with Debbie. My roomie and i always envy how close and loving they were.

Sad to say, we drifted apart after graduation. Partly because of work and the fact he was posted oversea for job rotation and because we didn't share similar interest in sports. He was always the more adventurous guy.

It was shocking when i first received the call from dino telling me that EJ had passed away. He couldn't confirm it and we didn't believe it. So, we went around calling those who were close to him to confirm. When i finally knew it was true, i really can't believe it. It was beyond words to describe my feelings then. I just felt like stopping work and going home. I felt tired and weak... I called my roomie and told him about it. He was shocked and couldn't believe it too... Everything was like a bad dream... I spend the rest of the day informing all those who know him the bad news. All of them express shock and sadness. That's how great a guy he was.

Even though now he's gone, i'll always remember the times we had together in army and Uni. He would always be a great friend and great competitor. Good bye my dear friend, you'll always be in our heart.

LZ aka AW