For a long time, I have observed that kindness seems to be a rare gem that few can find easily today. We read about gruesome murders that could have been committed by serial killers. There is the tragic death of TBH that left a baby without a father and a widow without the man she loves. Then there are the students who are scarred by statements from those who are in positions of authority. When we weave our way round the streets of town, the random honking of road hogs or the sudden braking of the car in front of us to take revenge for others honking from behind are evidence of the stark scarcity of kindness in society today. Far too often, many tend to say words that hurt and break rather than build and give hope.
A friend of mine who had an operation recently related how she had to hobble her way at the airport to find a trolley for her luggage before she reached the check-in counter where she had already arranged for wheelchair assistance. While on crutches, she had to push two bags and no one helped her until a young man came and offered his assistance.
Honestly, don't you love being on the receiving end of acts of kindness? I am sure you would agree with me when I say that simple acts of caring can make our day! Such kindness can encourage, inspire, support and uplift us, especially on a bad day.
At the same time, we should also try to give acts of kindness by offering encouragement, inspiration, support and uplifting words to those who are feeling down.
Today, I embraced kindness in the most unexpected place.
After picking up my younger boy from his last BM tuition class that had been specially arranged to give them a boost of confidence for the UPSR next Tuesday, I headed to the nearby coffee shop in front of Chung Hwa Confucian High School where we had wan tan noodles for lunch.
Following that, I walked to the road divider where an old man was selling local cakes. He reminded me so much of my late father so I started talking to him while I made my selection of an assortment of chye kuih, 'malaikoh' and yam cake (had to stock up as when under pre-exam stress, my younger boy tends to have a voracious appetite).
My eyes fell upon a tray of nyonya style curry puffs. These are different from ordinary curry puffs as the pastry has the shell design on it in concentric circles, the preparation of which is a tedious process as it entails different methods of rolling the pastry. I learnt it in my younger days but never practised what I learnt as I feel it is more convenient to buy than to prepare it on my own.
"Are these curry puffs good?" I asked him with a smile.
"Yes, many come back to buy and there are those who order these for their parties," was his gracious reply.
"It's three for RM2 but 70 cents each." he continued.
"I'll take three then," I responded.
"Here, I'm giving you one as a present," said the old gentleman.
I was completely stunned. In a world where a smile is seldom seen, where drivers cut lanes and people raise their voices at hawkers who forgot to put more chillies etc, here was an old gentleman whom I had never ever met before who actually gave me a free curry puff. The total for my kuih was RM5 and I told him that I would pay for that extra curry puff.
"It is a present," he said. In fact, the actual words he used were "Wah sang lu chiak".
I had a lump in my throat and had to hold back my tears. His random act of kindness truly touched me deeply.
"Kam sia, Uncle," I replied.
Often times, we read about stinginess and calculativeness in people but here is an old man who still has to work to earn a living, one whom I had never met before and who had so much joy and a happy glow on his face.
He just went on to tell me about his work and how selling cakes made him happy. As I stood there listening to him, other customers came, presumably his regulars asking for this and that. One even asked if he would have those stuff in the evening and he said he only sold at about 7 each evening on school days.
As I walked towards my car, I wished in my heart that our citizens, especially politicians, would partake in more random acts of kindness to make the world a better place instead of shooting one salvo after another.
May you be an instrument of peace and kindness each day of your life. Take care and have a pleasant evening. Next post will be up at 6 a.m. tomorrow. Good night.
mokja In time of needs,on various occasions,I was helped by people different from my ethnic group.I wrote about them in my blog.The officer who helped me when my car broke down and the lorry driver who 'reprimanded' my husband were my angels.
I could never thank them enough.