"I cried because I had no shoes, until I saw a man with no feet"
I'm sure most of us have read this proverb before. But nothing brought it home to me until yesterday afternoon.
Had gone to visit someone when she told me that her daughter had not come home since before Raya Haji. She had gone to the clinic to clean up a sore toe but had not returned. She was not at her own house and the old lady had no means to check the hospitals in case she was warded somewhere. I immediately took her to the Sg Buloh hospital, which was the closest, and after checking with admissions, found that her daughter WAS a patient and had been hospitalised for more than 10 days.
We went up to see her and discovered that the sore toe had been badly infected and was immediately amputated upon admission. She was still recovering and could leave soon. She did call her previous employer who came to see her and offer some financial aid. We visited for a while and I was amazed at their cheerful nature and resilience. If I was in a hospital for more than 10 days with no visitors I would have cried my eyes out!
I was upset that none of the relatives who were told of the missing daughter took any action to help. The old lady had no telephone, no husband and no income. She used to be a cleaner, but had become too old to do the work. Last year she babysat, but the people paid her very little, and this year had not confirmed if they were still going to employ her. The daughter had been retrenched and still had not found another job. Another son lived nearby but is not much help. I was further upset to find that he did not inform the sister that a factory was looking for operators last month, despite promising me that he would. Mainly, I was upset that these people did not take care of each other and took advantage of the mother's passive nature. It just shows how important your upbringing is in determining your future and outlook in life.
Looking at these people, living on borrowed land, with a history of bad and deceased husbands, uncaring family and barely enough to live on, I was forced to realise how blessed I was. At least I have an education, a roof over my head, a decent income and a social life, no matter how limited. I know my family would help me out in case of emergencies and I have the means to take care of myself, insya-Allah.
I don't know if something can be done to help them improve their situation. They are not totally helpless, the daughter can still work. The mother too, to a certain extent. Maybe I'll ask Kakak about that. I'm no expert on social matters, but I don't want them reliant on aid, it would be degrading to them and no help in the long run. Everyone should be able to live in dignity. I hope they will too.
Had gone to visit someone when she told me that her daughter had not come home since before Raya Haji. She had gone to the clinic to clean up a sore toe but had not returned. She was not at her own house and the old lady had no means to check the hospitals in case she was warded somewhere. I immediately took her to the Sg Buloh hospital, which was the closest, and after checking with admissions, found that her daughter WAS a patient and had been hospitalised for more than 10 days.
We went up to see her and discovered that the sore toe had been badly infected and was immediately amputated upon admission. She was still recovering and could leave soon. She did call her previous employer who came to see her and offer some financial aid. We visited for a while and I was amazed at their cheerful nature and resilience. If I was in a hospital for more than 10 days with no visitors I would have cried my eyes out!
I was upset that none of the relatives who were told of the missing daughter took any action to help. The old lady had no telephone, no husband and no income. She used to be a cleaner, but had become too old to do the work. Last year she babysat, but the people paid her very little, and this year had not confirmed if they were still going to employ her. The daughter had been retrenched and still had not found another job. Another son lived nearby but is not much help. I was further upset to find that he did not inform the sister that a factory was looking for operators last month, despite promising me that he would. Mainly, I was upset that these people did not take care of each other and took advantage of the mother's passive nature. It just shows how important your upbringing is in determining your future and outlook in life.
Looking at these people, living on borrowed land, with a history of bad and deceased husbands, uncaring family and barely enough to live on, I was forced to realise how blessed I was. At least I have an education, a roof over my head, a decent income and a social life, no matter how limited. I know my family would help me out in case of emergencies and I have the means to take care of myself, insya-Allah.
I don't know if something can be done to help them improve their situation. They are not totally helpless, the daughter can still work. The mother too, to a certain extent. Maybe I'll ask Kakak about that. I'm no expert on social matters, but I don't want them reliant on aid, it would be degrading to them and no help in the long run. Everyone should be able to live in dignity. I hope they will too.
3 comments:
Its true, we might think that we had the raw end of the deal until we met someone handed worst (in our own exacting standard that it...)
But then again, a person without legs might not understand nor share our trivial whine about not having a shoe, for he has no use for such contraption...
They has bigger things in mind.
my kilang is looking for operators. one site in sg way and shah alam. transportation provided.
nadhra@gmail.com
Thanks, Nadhra. WOuld appreciate further details. Call/ email me, OK?
Rgds,
Az
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