The words which changed my life

Memories of my dad are full of inspirational situations which I still refer to till today. My father was a self-driven, hardworking and persevering man. He only rested during bed time or in the holidays. He valued time and money more than anything; hence he had a successful flower business which became a business where everyone in the family was an employee. My father made it clear that it was the source of our survival and everyone should get involved. Although he had a day job, the nursery was his first and last stop to and from work. Years later, he fell sick and decided to take an earlier retirement. To him, this was a chance to invest more time in his business. On his sick bed, he would still draw up landscaping plans for his clients. He would still drive from one flower wholesaler to the next stocking up more plants for the nursery. As if this was not enough for a sick person, he would work at our cash-crop farm where we grew cabbages, tomatoes and onions. At 16, I started to realise that my father was falling ill but still wanted to continue with his work. My mother always complained to the elders to warn my father to rest since he never listened to her. My father enjoyed looking at the stars at night and that eventually became a hobby to me too. As we sat outside one night, I asked him, “Daddy why is it that you never want to rest?” his answer was simply “Nothing comes when you are sleeping”. These are the words which changed my life.