With his silky saxophone in hand, the professional musician, affectionately known as Yeatt to fans and friends, was the centre of attention as he performed with his Rimba Band at corporate dinners, weddings and local pubs.

Like many others, the movement control order (MCO) since March 2020 significantly affected his band, effectively cutting their only source of income.

A glimmer of hope seemed to dawn on them in July last year when musical groups were once again allowed to perform, only for the ban to be reinstated again at the end of the same month.

Yeatt was, however, undaunted despite the road bump and was determined as ever to wade it out and resurrect his band’s fortunes, believing the light is not too far off at the end of the tunnel.

But as luck would have it, he experienced another setback, this time a major one, when he suffered a stroke the following month.

He was paralysed on the left side of his body, his speech was impaired and his vision blurry in the left eye. He was warded for almost a week in the hospital before being allowed to return home.

When at home, he spent most of the time in bed and had to use a wheelchair to move around.

While losing his mobility was devastating, the 49-year-old said it was nothing compared to losing his musical prowess and skills, which he had nurtured since a young age.

“I had perfect pitch before but after the stroke, I lost everything including all sense of musical tempo,” Yeatt told FMT. A perfect pitch is the rare ability of a person to identify or re-create a given musical note without the benefit of a reference tone.

From that point on, he had gone from someone brimming with high hopes to feeling defeated. Dark thoughts swirled.

“I felt useless, like I was a burden to my family as I was not able to do anything.

“I felt there was no point in living and I admit there were a few times I felt like ending my life,” he said, his voice trembling with sadness and remorse.

He spent some two months battling the demons in his head. Suffice to say, they were bitter and testing times for all in the family.

But thanks to the love and dogged motivation from his wife Caroline Timothy and nine-year-old daughter Melody, as well as other family members and friends, Yeatt‘s spirit is finally on the mend.

“Because of the support system I have, the negative aura is slowly going away. And I started praying again.

“I am also trying everything that can help me to regain my strength, from physiotherapy and acupuncture to urut kampung (traditional massage),” he said.

Although his family does not celebrate Chinese New Year, it did not stop them from holding a get-together during the recent festive break so that close family and friends could visit him.

Among those who visited were Sabah assistant minister and long-time friend Joniston Bangkuai.

“It’s a small get-together but it’s big for me. I’m really touched that they came over to see me. The laughter and bantering makes me more motivated to be better,” he said.

While the road to full recovery is still considerably long, Yeatt said he has at least begun to overcome his emotional hurdles and that makes the journey to restart his career less difficult.

“I miss playing my saxophone and singing again. I have to start training my vocal chords from scratch, singing ‘do re mi’ as my daily exercise but it’s okay because it’s all part of the process,” he said.

As the sole breadwinner for his family, he said he is aiming to get back to work in less than two years as they are only depending on a monthly cash assistance from the welfare department to get by.

Relatives and friends are also helping his family financially.

“It’s hard work but I know I shouldn’t stress myself out too. What’s important is that I can get back to performing with my band mates again,” Yeatt said.

But who knows? With the kind of family and friends he has, Yeatt might just be back on that stage sooner than we think.