'She was my entire life'

MR MICHAEL Puhaindran knew that lawyer Lo Hwei Yen was the woman he wanted to marry from the moment he met her. It was a brief encounter, along bustling Change Alley at Raffles Place, in 2006 when Ms Lo was a pupil with law firm Drew and Napier.
The 37-year-old recalled that he asked his friend: 'Who's the babe?' So began their eight-month courtship, which led to their Bali wedding last year.

A celebration of Hwei Yen's life


More than 100 family members and close friends of lawyer Lo Hwei Yen gathered at her wake last night to celebrate her life.

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It is obvious Mr Puhaindran is still reeling from the loss of the woman he said he 'waited all his life to find'. Minutes before he was to speak with reporters, he appeared distracted and lost in thought.

The only time he broke into a smile was when a friend pointed to a picture of Ms Lo and said something to him.

'She had a smile that captured you. When you saw her smile, you knew that this was a person who smiled with her whole being,' Mr Puhaindran said, when asked what had struck him most about his 28-year-old wife.

A second, chance encounter at coffee shop Spinelli presented Mr Puhaindran with an opportunity to ask Ms Lo out for lunch. Their first date was at San Marco's at the Fullerton Hotel.

Certain that Ms Lo was the one for him, Mr Puhaindran popped the question on the first day of their holiday in the Maldives. She accepted immediately. 'I had not planned to do it so soon, but I guess I just could not wait,' he said.

They also had the same taste in music. 'Even though she's nine years younger than me, she liked retro music. We had a really good time,' said Mr Puhaindran, referring to the Kylie Minogue concert they attended the day before she left for Mumbai.

Like all newly weds, they had the occasional tiff, but Mr Puhaindran described the last few weeks he had with her as the 'best time of my life'. 'She was my entire life, and everything I did, I did for her.'

He loved his wife so much that he would not even let her get wet in the rain.

'I would do all I could to make her life as smooth as possible and she would do the same for me. Being unable to protect her...' Mr Puhaindran broke off mid-sentence, clearly struggling with his pain.

The support of family and friends has helped him cope with his grief. 'Before coming back to Singapore, I didn't know how I was going to carry on.'

Regarding the future, Mr Puhaindran said that he is now 'taking things one day at a time'. He has kept himself busy with the wake arrangements, making sure that everything is perfect, down to every last detail.

It is clear that Mr Puhaindran's wife is still the centre of his life. When asked what she would have wanted for him, he faltered for a moment as he struggled to contain his emotions.

His voice cracked as he said: 'She would want me to live my life

after finished reading this article, my tears drop ....... at times i wonder why god must play a trick on this couple who is so ever loving to each other . never easy to to cope for the loss of a loved one especially that someone is someone who will walk with you for the rest of your life. ....

It teaches us to treasure the people whom so ever shower their love on us.. treasure the moments.. never take things for granted.. here I wish Mr Micheal Puhaindran all the best...