PhD Survival 1st Year (Part 4)

Dear readers, as promised in the last entry, please find the sample of the 3-year course gantt chart enclosed for your reference. This is the biggest shot that I can squeeze in.

The header row are numbered by month from 1st to 3rd year, total of 36 months (only half is shown in this chart).

 

The first column contains a list of activities: the rows in the first section (i.e General Activities) list down the activities or school requirement in the PhD course. As you can see, student annual leave is also incorporated because our leave coincides with the progress of our research rather than the school holidays. The rows in the second section (i.e Research: Phase 1) are tasks in the research. The rows in the third section (i.e Thesis write-up) are the planned chapters for the final thesis.

The yellow boxes are the estimated month for us to accomplish the listed tasks. There are no yellow boxes for the third section because they are to be accomplished in the 3rd year which is not shown on this chart.

Now...moving on to the next point:

2.2 You must be in love with what you are going to embark into.

'You must love what you are about to do, you must feel comfortable doing it...otherwise PhD is going to be an awful period of your life' (Dr MM).

I have been working in the area of kidney disease, and that is the area I am most comfortable. It excites me and being able to a research in this area is just marvelous. So, I brought this idea to my supervisors. Before the working title was finalised, I was asked to consider another two different research - pharmacokinetics properties of a renal drug in children on dialysis or a  database epidemiological research  (erk! Don't think I can survive in these areas, so many mathematical theories and formulae. I am naturally allergic to numbers and my undergraduate lecturers can certify this). Both research already had frame work in place and had good prospect for publication. Should I chose either one of them, it would have saved me some time in preparing for the research proposal (what I wanted to do have to start from scratch). However, I opted to stick to the topic I am most comfortable with.As much as we should be flexible in deciding on the research area (being too rigid selecting your area of research may make you lose valuable opportunities) it is good to have an idea of your own. You must know what you want; this is when working experience comes in handy.

One of my colleagues could not decide what his/her area of interest was. Within the initial 12 months, he/she tried out two different research and end up terminating the course because it was not what he/she liked doing. 

2.3 How many supervisors (SV)?

Next is dealing with the supervisors (SV) - the person who will be supervising and guiding us throughout the course. They are knowledgeable in identifying research questions and the appropriate method in obtaining the answers, BUT this does not mean that they know more than you do in the research of your PhD. PhD is about adding fresh knowledge...it is something new and unknown. So please do not expect to be spoon fed or wait to be told what to do next or blame entirely on the SV when we feel lost. Almost all postgraduate handbooks explains about how to work or deal with SV, so we shall not discuss them in here. Should you need to know more, do not hesitate to leave your comment.

What is about to be discussed here is to whom should we report to if we have more than one SV? For example, in my case, I have 2 academic SVs, 2 clinical SVs and 3 clinical collaboraters. To be frank, it took me a while to justify who should be tagged in email of certain matters. They are equally important.

So, let us first understand their roles.  In general, academic supervisors (aSV) are responsible for all our academic activities; they should be our principal reference. Positive comments from aSVs can make wonders in passing the final viva (I've heard). The 1st aSV is usually a senior academician (in terms of expertise and reputation) than the 2nd aSV. The 1st aSV plays an important role in the first year especially the initial 6 months. They are influential and often the referral person in their area of research. Due respect to their expertise and reputation, they are the one who would finalise your research questions and method. This also means that they are extremely busy, this is when the 2nd aSV plays a role. The 2nd aSV could be an assistant professor, senior honorary lecturer or research fellow.  They are probably the person you will interact with most of the time for advice and technical matters.  

There is no hard and fuss rule about who should we report to - the only way to know is to ask. Haha..this is important when the 1st and 2nd aSv are having different views..if we do not stand for ourselves; we'll be in dilemma and stuck in the middle.  For example, in my case the arranegement was such:

• Weekly progress should be emailed to the 1st aSV
• All correspondant emails (for ex: with collaborators/correpondant author of articles) must be cc'd to both aSV.
• problems not possible to be settled by the 2nd aSV should be attention to the 1st aSV.

And I also added two more:

• Whenever you email your 2nd aSV to clarify on any issues or to remind them matters that require their attention/follow-ups, have it cc'd to your 1st aSV (2nd aSV could be busy as well, having the same email cc'd to the boss would help them to remember).
• If the 1st and 2nd aSV have different views, do not hesitate to ask (either in supervisory meetings or via email) as to which view is final. Most of the time, if they could not decide and this is made known, we have the liberty to decide!...and that is far easier than waiting in confusion.

2.4 What if I could not get along with aSV?

This is very subjective, and I am in no position to advise on how to handle problematic situation between student and aSV. It is something none of us want to fall into. I have no experience in this (and let it be that way); from my observation..most of the tim, the affected student will feel helpless, dissapointed and angry - if you fall in this pithole please do not jump into conclusion, make no decision and keep silent until you have calmed down. Other than praying hard for the situations to turn okay, here are a few tips on what you can do (these suggestions are from my peer discussion):

a. Understand your aSV

An important task from day 1. This does not mean we have to spy and sneak around to understand them. Observe their work ethics and personality. Every time after supervisory meeting, ask your supervisor at which part should you improve. If you do not ask, your aSV would assume you know your weakness and expect you to polish up. Be humble and ready to be taught.  If there is a chance, talk to your aSVs' previous students.

b. Seek help from peer group/some one more seniour in the team

Usually PhD students are part of a research team  in a  research centre/department. The team may consist of other PhD students, research assistant, research fellow and etc. If our colleagues can get along very well with the aSV, reflect what is wrong with ourselves. Talk to other students (but please do not gossip; talk to a colleague who is trustworthy to give advice).

c. Seek help from PhD coordinator

A PhD coordinator (or councellor, advisor or etc) is the officer who looks over the PhD course. Book an appointment to seek advice from the coordinator; discussions are confidential.

PhD Survival: 1st Year (Part 3)

Please note that different universities may have different policies for PhD programme. Our research genre may be different. This is just a guide which may or may not be applicable to you. 

When I first registered, I was overwhelmed. On day one itself, I was looking forward to the last day. What I had in mind was to jump into doing a research as soon as possible and wanted to know everything to make it happen (warning - this is dangerous because you will severely exhaust yourself). How could I not be, my other 4 colleagues registered one month earlier and the orientation week was over. 

On the third day, I was introduced to my second supervisor Dr MM. As I registered one month later than the rest, I was given four sessions of personal orientation on overview of the research centre, the education programme and the unwritten rules in making life less complicated. What I learned from Dr MM have helped me a lot and I must not keep this to myself. The first thing I learned from Dr MM was expecting and dealing with the 'unexpected' which was discussed in length in the previous two entries. From this point onwards, I will summerise what I learned from the orientation week and the mistakes that should be avoided throughout year one.

(2) Eagle eye view

'..use the spot light..not the torch light..'

The journey of PhD course is unique depending on the nature of  our research. Nevertheless, the pathway is similar. Even though we start at different starting point, we should end up at the same end point. This is the generic flow/eagle eye view of year one:

1. First conduct literature review to work out a research proposal (generally 6 months; the faster the better)

2. Secondly, have the proposal ready (be ready to retype and do corrections, to be frank.. mine was approved after 8 drafts)

3. Thirdly, submit application for ethics approval (in the UK, the approval should be obtained within 8 weeks from the day of submission - this includes research committee interview and final result).

3. Then, start pilot/observation/trial data collection (this is optional, having this gives us great advantage during research defend/viva; might not be applicable to lab-based research) 

4. Prepare first year report and have it submitted on time (allocate 3 weeks for the examiner to review)

5. Sit for first year viva (research defend) to upgrade from MPhil to PhD. This means your proposed research has strong justification for  research to fill in the gap of current knowledge. Aim to sit for the viva no later than month 18, ideally by month 12 of the PhD course. The earlier the better.

6. Finally, submit at least one article for publication (do not put your work wasted, a good literature review is a potential article for publication!)

The order is flexible; each points will have many branches of to-do-list; we should be able to work on more than one task simultaneously. This is recommended whenever possible. It does not matter where your starting point is, just be aware of the big picture. For instance, 3 of my colleagues started with six months of data collection because the proposed research had obtained  ethical approval and funding prior to their registration. One of my colleagues had to work on submission for an amendment to a research proposal that was approved by the research ethics earlier on. I had to start with literature review to justify the importance of my proposed research area before coming up with a proposal.

We have the tendency to be immersed and absorbed into one particular task (or simply lazy) that we forgot (or delay) to look into (or plan for) other tasks -  individuals in this group are the ones using the torch light; they are very focused to only one or certain particular things and missed out the whole picture. A friend of mine got so tight with data collection and had only one month prior to his first year report submission to do literature review. Do not underestimate the amount of time you have to spare in conducting a literature review. He/she managed to get the report done on time but had a difficult viva because he/she  could not grasp the background knowledge of the research area and hence could not justify the importance of the research - the result was to redo literature review and retake the viva (minor cases - retake in 3 weeks time, major cases in 3 months).  

Literature review and research method are two important chapters of our first year report. If you do it well, the literature review is already a big chunk of Chapter 1 in the final thesis. In fact, our literature review is a potential publication. Work on it and try to submit for publication within year one. I managed to submit mine in month 10 and have it published 6 months later. It is hard work, but its worth doing :) Just imagine yourself (or other researchers) citing your own article in your next report, isn't it exciting and motivating.

The question is  - how to capture the eagle view? The answer is  - tabulate your 3-year gantt chart. In most cases, international students will take 1 or 2 weeks off after registration to settle down i.e accommodation, opening a bank account (very important to do this as soon as possible to ensure smooth scholarship transfer) and children's school. Day 1 in our gantt chart is the day we register, and not the day we have settle down/ ready to embark in academic/research work. As previously mentioned, PhD timeline starts ticking as the assimilation process takes place. 

3-year Gantt Chart

Before and after tabulating gantt chart...

Before: '3 years is like taking like forever..'

After: 'OMG, 3 years is too short' You'll then start worrying of not having sufficient time...then the game of chasing and being chased by dateline begins. This is normal, just don't freak out. So, start to plan your work for the 3-year programme and work your plan. 

The easiest way to tabulate a gantt chart is of course in Microsoft Excel (I will upload a snap shot as an example in the next entry).

First, begin with creating columns from Month 1 (in year 1) to Month 36 (in year 3). 

Secondly, divide multiple rows into 3 sections. 

List down the 3 years academic requirement in the first section, for example:

- Compulsory training courses to attend in the whole 3 years

- First year report submission

- Research day presentation

- In house proposal presentation

- First year viva 

- Publication 1

- Publication 2

As the exact date is yet to be confirmed, at this stage simply tick in the box for the estimated month within your PhD course. 

The second section contains tasks for your study/ies (PhD research may have more than 1 study), for example:

- Literature search

- Lit. review final report submission

- Proposal submission

- Research ethical application

- Data collection

- Ethics amendment (if required)

- Interim data analysis

- Data analysis

If there is a second or third study, do the same in different sections. 

The third section contains your thesis write up schedule; thesis submission and thesis viva due dates. 

Now, once you have all tabulated...36 months; make sure your supervisor(s) is happy with it. The gantt chart should be reviewed   in a scheduled manner, more frequent in the beginning of the programme. Make it an agenda in your meeting with the supervisors to review the gantt chart; this does not only keeps you on track but also as a gentle reminder for your supervisor to follow up on tasks that needed their feedback. 

Whenever you get drifted away or demotivated, look at your gantt chart and see where or at what stage should you be at that  moment. Even when you are hit by the unexpected, try your best  to stay on track. If there is a need to drag the timeline, do it cautiously. It is advised to talk about it with your supervisor. In major circumstances  that significantly affect your timeline (i.e poor health condition or having to be away for quite some time due to valid reasons), you may be ask to apply for an extension to the thesis submission date (this means your programme will take more than 36 months). 

PhD Survival: 1st year (Part 2)

In this entry, I am supposed to write on how I managed to stay on track despite the 'unexpected'. But, some of my friends suggested I should share a little bit on how I dealt with the emotional stress; and what my alternative plan was for the long-distance marital relationship - thank you for the suggestions. Well...this is a little bit private, but I will try my best to make it as general as possible with the intention to benefit my readers.  I have not obtained consent to spell out the names of individuals who have helped me through out the difficult times, so please allow me to temporarily address them with initials. May Allah reward all their good deeds and intentions.

1.1 Dealing with the unexpected

a) Spiritual comfort

My year one was tough and I almost cracked under pressure. My survival was not a coincidence indeed. Would you like to know what my best weapons were? They were not the fancy-high-tech gadget, simply Dhuha prayer on top of the compulsory five prayers and the Ma'thurat. If you are still seeking for spiritual fulfilment, I would suggest these two. If either of these are your weapons too, please do not hesitate to share in here what it meant to you for da'wah and for others to benefit.

I was introduced to Dhuha prayer by my mother at the age of 13. As mentioned in the previous entry 'Lady in Black Abayyah', I was away from my family since the age of 13. I remembered the agony of having no one to turn to for comfort; at the age of 13 to 17, I chose to stay in a boarding school whilst my parents and siblings went abroad. I was in my teen age, and I needed them most. That was when my mother bought me a soft panda like teddy bear to sleep with and also a booklet of sunna prayers.  

I remembered my mother's words: 'Mama and abah will always pray for you, and Allah knows this. If you feel scared, having difficult times or worried for whatever reason, take wudhu' and perform 2 rakaat of Dhuha. InsyaAllah, Allah will halt the bad and bring us only the best from any situation. Be assured in Allah's plan, and you will be confident in yourself'. Later, when I was in form 4 (16 years old), a friend of mine, NNA introduced to me the Ma'thurat. I fell in love with the miracles of Dhuha and Ma'thurat. I used the word miracle because in difficult times, they gave me enormous inner strength; and in the less demanding moments, they gave me a sense of belonging to keep down to earth...Wallahualam. In due respect for my non-muslim readers, please allow me to briefly explain about the Dhuha prayer and the Ma'thurat.

Muslims are obligated to pray five times a day. Muslims are also encouraged to perform supererogatory prayers in which Dhuha is one of them. Dhuha means dawn (daybreak), when there becomes brightness in the sky early in the morning. Dhuha is a short prayer (less than 10 minutes) performed in between day-break until noon. Whereas,  Ma'thurat is a compilation of zikr and short Quranic verses from recitation of  Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) for glorifying God.  

The point here is regardless of the differences in our faith, seek spiritual healing to stay in focus, focus, focus! We are most vulnerable at the peak and lowest trough; there is where Satan patiently awaits to lead us astray. When the heart is sore, it affects our thinking and actions. Clinging to the two secret weapons made me less dependent on God's creature for comfort, I have HIM and to HIM only shall I seek help and guidance. I would like to thank my earliest Malaysian friends studying in London TA, MNH, FAR, AH and AHLM for introducing the weekly Quran Tafsir Classes.

b) Be careful in whom you share your problems with

If you need a shoulder to cry on or desperate for wise advice, reach out to your spouse, parent (or parent-in-law), your family member or your matured-thinking friends. In difficult times, it is human nature to lean on to who ever that gives us extra attention and care. Having friends for manly-talk or girly-talk does help to distress ourselves provided that you talked it over with a person that has the right character. If you are married and comfortable sharing problems with some one who happens to be from the opposite sex and not your spouse (or family members), be aware that you are opening the entrance of a war zone in your marriage. If you are single, it may be a start to a long-term relationship (not a guarantee though, but it can possibly happen) ... please make sure that person is not only 'single' but also 'available', you might fall on to the 'single but not available' ones.

I am blessed with a loving spouse, supportive family and mother-in-law; they are my strength. On the day I recieved the news my father-in-law passed away (4/2/11 1230pm), thank you to Prof IW and collaegues at the research centre for your understanding, and to MAW for walking me to Euston station to catch the flight.  Thank you to these wonderful person who has been very calming and helpful in their own way: FO, SAR, WKT, KMA, NMA, HAH and ZHMS.

c) Listen to your logic thinking and not entirely your heart  

Only God knows how difficult and devastated we were (my husband and I) to accept that the best solution for us  at that situation was for me to go ahead with my PhD in London, and he to stay back to handle the new commitments. That was our final alternative plan after listing down and pros and cons. Hundreds of worries filled up our mind, merely another wife/husband would truly understand.  I do not know how my husband handled it...men always do have their own way haven't they?

As for me, I accepted the fact that it is not always possible to have everything I desire at the same time. I thought of the worst-case scenario  that could have and would happen...and be grateful that I was not in that situation. My late father-in-law's advise keep on coming to me 'Once you have made a decision, make it happen and do not turn back. Have faith in Allah, not to worry'. I put my faith in Allah. This is my jihad, and I will strive. Allah will take care of all matters beyond my control. I only need to do my best and Allah will do the rest.

As for you, what is your justification in making a decision? Follow your logical thinking not your heart. Our heart is too soft and fragile to handle tough situations without logic thinking.

Reference:

1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nafl_salat 
2. http://www.islamic-dictionary.com/index.php?word=dhuha

PhD Survival: 1st year (Part 1)

Seventeen months and nineteen days ago I registered as a postgraduate student at the University College London. There is  approximately another 19 months to complete this 3-year programme, insyaAllah. This entry is about my experience surviving year one of a PhD course.   I do not have the best experience of all. However, I believe little information does make a big difference to some if not many.  What I am about to share does not necessarily apply to post graduate students, it may be applicable to you or anyone..afterall it is a story of life.

The focus of this article has nothing to do with  the technicality of conducting literature review, research methodology, thesis writing and the whole bundle of tasks expected from a PhD course...there are loads of excellent references out there thus I shall not dwell in any of them. I would like to share what I learned about putting my life in order from day one as a PhD candidate. Trust me, do not underestimate the stress level in going through the initial 12 months of  a PhD...some people are in luck to sail smoothly from the start to the end. Few get into that lucky boat, more often than not there will be rough waves and for the majority of students, the first wave hits in the first 12 months.

When studying abroad, the first challenge is to assimilate into the new environment (far from home, out from the comfort zone), new role (spouse+parent+employee to spouse+parent+student+housemaid+supervisee), new situation (coupled to be singled or vice versa) new community, new culture, new commitments and expectations. As the assimilation process takes place, the PhD timeline starts ticking. I learned that the first 12 month is crucial because it determines the speed and pathway of the next 24 months. The point is, whatever students have to do in the preliminary 12 months - do it fast smartly and do it right the first time!  Most students are on a 3-year scholarship; this means from the 37th months onwards pocket money comes from personal savings, no more scholarships. The average cost of living in London per person is approximately £1000/month. Some individuals manage to squeeze in £700/month, but honestly...I find it very challenging.

For discussion purposes let's say £750 for accommodation, utilities and transportation plus another £250 for food and, etc. Convert this to MYR, it  is approximately RM5000/month! Unless you have (or make) time for a part-time job, say bye-bye to your savings. So, if you are wondering why I wrote this article...it is because I want to help fellow friends to be on track in the first 12 months. I am comfortable writing this because I manage to do it right (Alhamdulillah), and I want others to benefit from it. Thanks to my supervisors and colleagues at the research centre and most of all my supportive husband, family and friends.  

To help you engage to my story, allow me to briefly explain about myself. I am a pharmacist by profession, and my area of research is medication safety in children with kidney problem - to keep it simple, health sciences. After eight years practicing as a hospital pharmacist, I decided to pursue postgraduate study, and yes my area of research is very closely related to what I have been doing at work. You will understand later, the relevance of  my self introductory. My experiences are broken down into three topics as listed below. Whether or not will there be more topics remain unknown for now.

(1) The unexpected:

'..going through PhD is not an immunity towards the unexpected..'

(2) Eagle eye view:

'..use the spot light..not the torch light..'

(3) Take control

'..this is your game..your way..but not entirely your rules..'

1. The unexpected

Be prepared for the unexpected...accidental pregnancy, sudden sickness, marital problems, lose of loved ones and the list can go on forever. The unforeseen happen because we are alive. One thing we have to understand is that, going through PhD does not give us the immunity towards the unexpected. I pointed this out because some people have the perception that they can control or put a control of what is to happen during this period...when the unexpected hit the boat... they drown helplessly. 

In normal living, the unexpected events come and go; we deal with them then move on to the next - some bring happiness and joy; some bring sadness and sorrow. I said normal living because life is not normal in the process of obtaining PhD - you will be sort of chased by (or chasing) submission dates within in a very limited time frame and obligated to sacrifice the usual comfort either willingly or unwillingly. When we are not ready for the unexpected sadness and sorrows, they can really drown us on air. 

When I first came, the plan was my husband will join me after he sorts out his work in the next couple of months. As he was preparing to come over, my father-in-law fell sick and passed away three months later. This was his late father who has been healthy-never-sick-or-ill. This unexpected event took place between the second to the fifth month of my course. Basically, my first 6 month was in pieces - I flew back and forth four times within that period and the longest I managed to stay in London during the ordeal was 10 days. Not long but sufficient to have the draft proposal submitted. Somehow, I subconsciously did what I had to do and of course with Allah's blessing I manage to stay on track.  Despite of  being 6 months behind time and having emotional stress from what had happened, I manage to obtain ethics aproval for my research in month 8, conduct a pilot study untill month 10, submit an article for publication and passed the first year viva one month earlier than scheduled. That was definitely not a coincidence. Oh...I must also mention that on top of the above, my professor moved on to another university outside the UK.

After the ordeal, due to some unforeseen circumstances, my husband was not able to join me. It was very upsetting for us as we were so focused on Plan A and were not mentally prepared for a 36-month long-distance relationship! We initially thought the longest would be 12  months. God is ever loving. The unexpected must have given us extra courage to take up the challenge with strong faith in HIM.

I was very sad (of course) until I heard the news about another student, who was diagnosed with late-stage lung cancer. I was dumbfounded and numb hearted. Suddenly, my sadness was like almost nothing compared to the suffering of battle for life, chemotherapy, financial restriction, kids to feed, accommodation and the etc the unfortunate couple had to go through. It was unexpected.  Another was a student who got into a vehicle accident while on holiday visiting family back home, he passed away. That was too, unexpected. A new student had ectopic pregnancy and had to deal with what it took to go through a miscarriage. Some students had to go through panic attack when academic supervisors changed to another university (I was one of them) - this means they have to either settle down with a new supervisor or transfer to the new university. The second option usually applies to students who are dependent on their supervisor's research grant (that was not me..phew!). Some individuals had to unwillingly go through a divorce because of personal reasons which none of us can actually understand. Two of my colleagues terminated their study half way through. A few selected ones faced more than one of these challenges simultaneously - may Allah reward them great patience. Well...not all the unexpected are melancholies. I mentioned the difficult ones because these are the types of challenges that have high potential to slow you down and drain all your energy - mentally and physically.   Only those who have been in this situation would understand.

It is unfair and not sensible to think that those who exceeded their timeline were purposely doing it for a hidden agenda - everyone wants to finish on time and longing to be back to their normal life as soon as possible. The examples above are the common day-to-day stories, yes nothing new. However, to handle them in an isolated place far away from the usual loving comfort requires triple or more of the standard effort. 

Therefore, always have Plan B, C and D - this applies to how we plan our (a) personal life throughout PhD as well as (b) research-related tasks. Never take things for granted. Even though (a) and (b) should be well separated; in most situation they twined, the solutions come from the very same head - yours! It is beyond my rights and capability to interfere with how one should handle the unexpected that hits their personal life i.e (a). Some how or rather, having one part sorted is far better than having both unsorted. I will share what I learned about having more than just Plan A for research-related tasks for year 1 and how I managed to stay on track despite of all the 'unexpected' in the Part 2.

Kuala Lumpur-London and in between

10,549 kilometers..6,555miles

Distance between the heart and mind

It's a choice willingly taken, so should not rile

A choice the heart and mind consistently twined

Kuala Lumpur is where the heart stays

London is where physically placed

It's hard to settle down in one space

When the heart and mind choose seperate ways

The heart expects the mind to understand

The mind thought the heart would comprehend

How could it be.. they talk a different langguage at a different frequency

That's why they end up confused, you see?

Kuala Lumpur-London..not that far but beyond reach

In between is an empty space, as empty as this heart, which the mind tries to ignore

It's bothering and teasing every second - while asleep, eat, run or sit

Thats when counting the days started..making it endless even more!

Maybe the teleport should exist after all

One blink to be here, two blinks to be there

Sounds scary aye!..but better than long distance phone calls

Definitely better than talking to Mr Teddy Bear!

Skype and instance messages does help...but its makes KL-LON even far and wide

Never-ever the same as having the person you love by your side.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJNRyB_rkt8&feature=related

Trying hard not to miss you

Trying hard not to 'miss you'

During the hectic days and the lonely nights

Keeping ourselves busy with things-to-do

Most of the times, we can't think right

Trying to pretend 'everything's okay'

Couldn't lie even if we wanted to

In truth, our mind constantly on someone far away

Because... 'I truely miss you'

One say 'Good morning love', the other replied 'Sweet dreams love, Good night'
Couldn't Skype when time is tight

Just a quick 'Hello, I miss you'

Most of the time, its Whatsapp to the rescue

This is dificult but it is possible

Others don't and will never understand

We have 'us' to take responsible

We have Him to seek mercy for a helping hand