Visit to Chee Hong Kog Moral Promotion Society (8 Aug 2011)

As part of the school’s National Day celebration, all Secondary Three students were brought on a visit to Chee Hong Kog Moral Promotion Society on 8 August 2011. Before we set off, I thought that we would be meeting some senior people not unlike our own parents and grandparents. But what greeted us at the Home was nothing near what I had expected.

When we stepped into the Home, it was like being transported into a different world. The residents of the home look very old and frail.  Many could not walk without support, some needed walking sticks, some were in wheelchairs and yet others who needed to be fed in their beds by nurses. Quite a number had their limbs or other parts of the body amputated. I could not see any happiness nor life in their eyes.

To young and fit students like us, ‘physical suffering’ often means having to study for tests and exams, complete lots of homework and not having enough leisure time to play, relax and chat up with friends.  We groan and moan that school life is boring and tedious.  Sometimes we even complain that the food we eat is not delicious enough.

But at the Home, we saw what ‘physical suffering’ truly is – people who have so much time in their hands but no one to share it with.  People who live from day to day with nothing to look forward to.  People who just have to eat whatever that is served up to them. People whose only leisure is to get on the few sports equipment lying around.  And when the sun sets, and the lights are off, they go to bed. People who carry on this routine day after day till the end comes.

At first, I did not want to interact with the old folks.  But when I saw them, something inside me stirred. I felt I wanted to spread some cheer to their gloomy routine.  My heart told me to do something, anything just to cheer them up in the limited time we had there.  So I served them food, chatted with them and played some simple games. And when I saw the smiles on their faces, that was all I wished for.

I came back reflecting on the visit.  I think about the friends I go to whenever I am troubled, the family who loves me unconditionally, a comfortable home to relax in, teachers who give me knowledge and advice, and goals and dreams that I strive for. But what do these senior folks have?  In comparison, we are so very lucky. It makes me want to be stronger and work harder to face life’s challenges courageously.  What about you?

By Yu Chang Yong (Secondary 3 Resilience)