Beaten But Not Broken: Takalah’s Indomitable Spirit

By Foo Yee Ching (Althea Reese)

Chapter 1

At the Prime of His Life

Tan Kok Liang was at the prime of his life. An avid sportsman, he was a lightweight boxing champion, a triathlete, a swimmer, a rock climber, and a mountain climber. He was the embodiment of strength, discipline, and promise. 

He had undergone onerous training as a Commando during his National Service Days in Singapore, which put his physical and mental resilience through a crucible of fire via relentless and stringent trials of the body and mind. 

Through blood, sweat, and tears, Kok Liang navigated numerous physical and mental challenges to earn the coveted red beret—emblem of the Commandos’ unwavering spirit, indomitable will, and courage. This was a laudable feat, considering that he was asthmatic and frail when he was young. Kok Liang brought glory and pride to his family.

Beyond sportsmanship and soldiering, Kok Liang’s intellect shone. Armed with a Mechanical Engineering degree from the National University of Singapore, Kok Liang had secured a highly coveted and prestigious role in a Multinational Company (MNC) following six rounds of rigorous interviews, where he defeated 7,000 candidates for the position. His career prospects were radiant as he was slated to embark on his career at the MNC a week later. 

Beyond sportsmanship and soldiering, Kok Liang’s intellect shone. Armed with a Mechanical Engineering degree from the National University of Singapore, Kok Liang had secured a highly coveted and prestigious role in a Multinational Company (MNC) following six rounds of rigorous interviews, where he defeated 7,000 candidates for the position. His career prospects were radiant as he was slated to embark on his career at the MNC a week later. 

Chapter 2

The Accident That Transformed His Fate

But one fateful night on 24 May 1994 altered the course of his life with cruel swiftness. After bidding his girlfriend farewell following a dinner date, Kok Liang steered his motorbike onto the expressway. 

At a bend, a police car loomed, halted at the roadside. With no time to stop, Kok Liang veered, attempting to squeeze through the narrow space between the police car and the metal railing on the side of the expressway. Unfortunately, his handlebar scraped the door of the police car. As his helmet was not tied properly, it barrelled through the air. The impact hurled his motorbike over the police car, breaking it in two. Kok Liang was catapulted like a ragdoll across the asphalt by fate’s cruel hand, landing diagonally 70 metres away from the extreme right lane to the shoulder curb on the left.  

Kok Liang’s severe injuries bore silent testimony to the violent impact of that life-altering moment: a brain injury, a dislocated left shoulder, three broken ribs punctured his right lung, a smashed face, and a fractured right leg that was shortened by 4 cm because of the swelling of the surrounding muscles. The doctors’ prognosis was dismal; Kok Liang only had a 0.1 per cent survival rate. 

The surgeons’ unyielding spirit enabled him to undergo seven surgeries in his brain to remove a recurring blood clot, and seven reconstructive surgeries on his face, teeth and leg to lengthen the shin that had shortened because of muscle swelling. Against all odds, Kok Liang lived. He spent three months in the hospital. 

Chapter 3

His Family’s Grief

Kok Liang’s survival was overshadowed by sorrow. His motorbike accident brought much emotional pain and apprehension to his family, particularly his parents. His father postponed his heart bypass to focus on Kok Liang’s recovery. 

Two weeks before Kok Liang’s discharge, his father passed away due to a heart attack in his sleep. Although Kok Liang attended his father’s funeral, he did not comprehend why his father was not physically present. 

Chapter 4

Re-Learning Everything From Scratch

As the accident obliterated half of Kok Liang’s brain storage capacity, the knowledge he had accumulated throughout his protracted educational journey vanished into oblivion, erased like a chalkboard wiped clean. He was akin to a newborn child with the damaged body of a 25-year-old. Kok Liang had to re-learn everything from scratch, including his vocabulary. 

Embracing his warrior and indomitable spirit, Kok Liang spent hours, months, and years of relentless relearning, poring over and assimilating several dictionaries, encyclopaedias, textbooks, and even the 10-year series that his brother and secondary schoolmates had procured for him. Book by book, he rebuilt his mind. 

Listening to the radio bolstered his general knowledge and amplified his ability to comprehend and discern. To improve Kok Liang’s articulation, Kok Liang’s former classmate encouraged him to join the Thomson Toastmasters Club. He also practised proper pronunciation through the recitation of Mandarin phonetics (Hanyu Pinyin) and Japanese phonetics. 

Chapter 5

Remorse for Causing His Father’s Demise

Three months following his father’s passing, Takalah learnt that his father had sacrificed his life for him; his father had postponed his heart bypass to focus on Kok Liang’s recovery. The immense remorse of having indirectly caused his father’s demise weighed heavily on Kok Liang. It plunged him into an abyss of despair, where every breath he took felt like betrayal. 

Kok Liang contemplated giving up on his life, conceiving a plan to hurl himself down from the ninth floor of a block of flats one morning. From that vantage point on the ninth floor, he witnessed people walking downstairs, going about their everyday lives. He pondered the trauma they would be in to witness him jumping down in front of them. That gruesome and grotesque bloodied image would inevitably haunt and torment them for the rest of their lives. But they are innocent individuals. They did not deserve to have nightmares of that chilling image lingering and etched in the deep recesses of their minds because of him. 

Kok Liang contemplated his mother’s grief if he were to take his own life; it would have been unbearable, he thought, given that her husband, his father, had just passed away. Kok Liang reconsidered his decision by taking a walk downstairs. 

Chapter 6

The Turning Point

Fortunately, providence intervened. At the void deck of his block, Kok Liang stumbled upon a neighbour slumped on a bench holding his walking stick while staring listlessly into space. Kok Liang asked the neighbour where he stayed. The neighbour pointed, and Kok Liang accompanied the neighbour back home. 

At the neighbour’s home, the neighbour’s mother explained that the neighbour was struck by a bus six years ago. He fractured his spine, was paralysed, and sustained permanent brain damage. 

That encounter brought a different perspective to Kok Liang. Compared to his neighbour, Kok Liang had regained his speech capacities, some mobility, and a mind capable of clarity, fragile threads tying him to his former self. Kok Liang saw that he could offer companionship, solace, and hope to his neighbour through frequent visits. Kok Liang abandoned his initial plan to give up on life. In helping another, Kok Liang chose life.

Chapter 7

Memories Obliterated

With half his brain’s storage capacity obliterated, all the cherished memories and laughter he shared with his family, girlfriend, and friends were erased like a chalkboard wiped clean. To refresh his memory, his mother urged Kok Liang to learn about his former self and rebuild what memory had forsaken by reviewing his belongings: diaries, poems, and photographs.

Following Kok Liang’s accident, he had no recollections of having a girlfriend, much less the times he shared with her. She and Kok Liang’s best friend visited him at the hospital very often. As the relationship no longer resonated with Kok Liang, and he did not want to betray his conscience, he let his girlfriend go. 

Eventually, his girlfriend and his best friend tied the knot and built a happy family together. Kok Liang blesses their union as he feels they were made for each other. In letting go, Kok Liang found freedom. 

Chapter 8

Adopting the Name Takalah

While scouring through his belongings, Kok Liang discovered that his pen-friend greeted him as Takalah. Kok Liang sought clarification from his secondary school friends about his name Takalah. Through his friends, Kok Liang learnt that he created the name ‘Takalah’ for himself during his secondary school years. Formed from his initials T.K.L, he added A’s after each alphabet for academic inspiration and softened it with an H for a serene tone at the end. Kok Liang adopted Takalah as his name since then.

While working at a job stint in an international company with colleagues from several different countries, Takalah learnt that his name Takalah held layers of meaning in respective languages. 

It signifies “cannot lose” in Malay, “treasure” in Japanese, “warrior” in Native American, and “can”  (可以) in Cantonese. Having been plucked from the jaws of death, he would not yield to despair. 

Two years after his accident, he stepped into life anew as Takalah by officially adopting that name. He aspires to live up to his name, to be resilient and tenacious, true to his Commando spirit of not giving up, as he navigates and rebuilds the next chapter of his life. 

Chapter 9 

Two Prescient Poems Presaged His Accident & Rebirth

While browsing through the poems he had penned in his youth, Takalah found a poem he had penned when he was 15, that eerily presaged his accident years before the motorcycle accident. The poem featured themes such as loss, struggle, and survival.

He found another poem penned when he was in the first year of Junior College, aged 16, that proved prescient.

While it would have been easy to let regret, resentment and bitterness about his own suffering fester, he did not dwell in those negative emotions. Instead, he saw the big picture; that the negative emotions were a thread of destiny, a clarion call to rise. Healing, he realised, was his own responsibility.

It dawned on Takalah that his accident was not a cruel ending, but a rebirth. His old life was destroyed. Yet, it marked his new beginning, as he forged his second lease of life. Having been plucked from the jaws of death, Takalah felt he had a profound purpose in life. With faith and hope in his heart, he purchased a watch with a compass attached. It was a constant and tangible reminder that, though lost, he could navigate the stumbling blocks and chart his way forward as he steers his life in the right direction. He hoped to find out what he could do and make a positive contribution to society. 

Chapter 10

Embarking on His Second Lease of Life

Takalah had a teaching stint for a few years, guiding normal technical students about camaraderie. 

Subsequently, he resigned from teaching to join his friend, who was pursuing dentistry in Australia. There, Takalah participated in a brain injury support group in Australia, which helps patients and inspires their family members and attended the Sixth World Congress on Brain Injury in Australia, where individuals shared their experiences. He also pursued a postgraduate diploma from La Trobe University. Takalah and three other brain-injury survivors were featured in Victoria’s Brain Injury Awareness Week publicity. 

Upon returning to Singapore, doctors trialled a pioneering Russian technique to lengthen his crushed leg. In one and a half months, he could walk. In a year, he ran the entire marathon with the elongated leg. From brokenness, he had reclaimed motion. 

Chapter 11

Helping the Elderly

He used to work as a therapist helping the elderly with their therapies. Now, Takalah has taken on the role of the European Union of Medical Specialists (UEMS) porter in a public hospital in Singapore, where he derives the intrinsic satisfaction of serving patients, predominantly the seniors. 

Chapter 12

His Mission: To Be a Beacon in Others’ Troubled Waters

Having been given a new lease of life, Takalah’s purpose in life is to be a beacon in others’ troubled waters. He continues to contribute to the Brain Injury community in Singapore. 

He joined Toastmasters to hone his proficiency in public speaking, not only to articulate, but also to inspire. Now, Takalah is an eloquent and articulate motivational speaker whose voice of resilience echoes in schools, community events, and on media platforms, shaping hearts and minds. He recounted with pride that the students were intrigued and captivated by his sharing, which broadened their perspectives.

Takalah encourages individuals who are experiencing the darkest moments in their lives to adopt a bird’s-eye view. It is integral to perceiving their struggles in a new light, enabling them to formulate solutions to resolve their issues or mitigate their negative impact. He also urges others to embrace empathy by putting themselves in the shoes of another, and considering the 5Ws-who, what, when, where, and why to gain deeper insights into how the 5Ws shape the lives of individuals.  

An inspiration to others, Takalah embraces the ethos of changing and adapting in a dynamic and ever-changing environment, while optimising their time, leveraging their knowledge, expertise, and experience, to make a positive impact in this world. 

Chapter 13

Embracing Compassion, Making a Positive Contribution

Takalah hopes that individuals will banish self-centredness, embrace compassion, consideration, and inclusion as they live for, and make a positive difference in the community. 

His message for youth is “The world is in your hands. How you walk your trail matters. Associate with people who uplift you. Leveraging the resources to learn and grow. Free yourself from the negative thoughts and selfishness. Build integrity and forge camaraderie, and work towards the betterment of society.” 

Chapter 14

His Indomitable Spirit

Takalah’s heartfelt experience underscored that though he was beaten, he was not broken. There is hope beyond a broken brain. 

Like a phoenix rising from the ashes, Takalah stands as a testament that while fate can shatter bone and memory, it cannot extinguish the indomitable spirit that triumphs amid adversity. From the abyss of his own suffering, he rose—not merely to survive, but to shine as a beacon for others in troubled waters. His experience is not only of survival, but of transformation. 

Author Charlotte Reed shared in her quote in her book, ‘May the Thoughts be With You’, “The wise are those who have travelled to the depths of their tragedies, and returned from them, bearing a gift for the world in their hands.” 

Takalah exemplifies a trail that whispers the same truth to us all: Though fate may crush his body, it cannot extinguish his indomitable spirit. The suffering and despair experienced can become the seed of a new dawn. You cannot lose, not if you choose to rise again. Takalah has returned from his tragedy, bearing a gift for the world in his hands. You can do it too. 

In the silent corridors of fate, where dreams once shattered and memories lay in fragments, Takalah stands—no longer merely a survivor, but a testament to the invincible will of the human spirit. From the wreckage of his past, he did not emerge unscathed, but reborn—tempered by loss, refined by pain, and illuminated by purpose.

He had been a Commando, a sportsman, a scholar—and then, by one cruel twist of destiny, stripped of all he once was. Yet from that desolate emptiness, he rebuilt himself word by word, step by step, memory by memory. In his journey, he discovered that healing is not a return to what was, but a courageous forging of what can be.

Takalah’s second life became his greatest mission—to light the path for others lost in their own darkness. His voice, once silenced by trauma, now resounds with clarity and compassion; his broken body, once a vessel of suffering, now moves in service to others. In the quiet grace of his daily work, in his speeches that stir weary hearts, and in the unspoken courage of his being, Takalah proves that tragedy can be transfigured into triumph.

He teaches us that adversity does not define us—it refines us. That hope is not the denial of pain, but its transformation. That even when life fractures our spirit, we can still choose to rise—again and again—stronger, wiser, and more compassionate than before.

For though fate may have crushed his body and erased his memories, it could not touch the flame within him—the flame that says, I cannot lose.

And so, the man once called Tan Kok Liang lives on as Takalah-the one who cannot lose, the one who rose from the ashes to bear his gift to the world: a reminder that within every broken soul lies the power to begin anew.

The End.

About the Author

This story was conceived, meticulously crafted, and penned by Althea Reese.

Passionate about writing, playing the piano, and appreciating the beauty of nature (skies and flowers), Althea Reese hopes to inspire readers with the inner strength, confidence, and courage to persevere and navigate challenges with an indomitable spirit, resilience, and fortitude. 

She encourages individuals to cherish their lives and perceive each day as a miracle and a present, with the reminder to focus on the present, as it is indeed a gift. Althea motivates individuals to pursue their passions, fulfil their innermost aspirations, optimise their potential to the fullest, and make a positive impact in this world. 

Althea also hopes her readers will embrace happiness, love, inner peace, joy, and gratitude in their lives.

By Foo Yee Ching (Althea Reese)