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13 Her Demise & Funeral "We're all already in our old-age. Don't go thinking you're still young. I've thought of myself as 'old' since my youth — to give myself a sense of urgency in the pursuit of Perfection. (Khun Yay, 24 March 1981) It had been a long time since Khun Yay had been in hospital. The previous time was 22 November 1997. Even this time when she was admitted to Kasemrat Hospital, Bangkok on 6 September 2000, everyone expected that Khun Yay would recover and be back at the temple before long. However, on 9 September 2000 she was still in intensive care. She lay with her eyes closed — still looking good in spite of what the doctors said. Everyone hoped for some kind of miracle. Her best white robes were fetched from the temple — the ones which she used only on the first Sunday of each month and for major festivals. A set of fine monk’s robes was also brought together with Khun Yay’s biggest crystal ball which was about ten centimetres in diameter — these latter were intended to be Khun Yay’s gift to the monastic community. The gifts were passed to Khun Yay to make wishes prior 157