It's amazing what a simple little thing like a bak zang can show. Yesterday, while I was walking along the corridor at my workplace, I bumped into three nice elderly 'aunties' who work as cleaners there. We exchanged our usual greetings and smiles, then one of them screamed "Wait! Wait! I want to give you something!" in Mandarin as she hurriedly made her way towards a little room at the end of the corridor. I followed her out of curiosity, and she emerged gleefully soon after, holding a small red plastic bag which contained a pair of bak zang. That 'aunty' said she had prepared these herself at home, and brought some to school to share with others. "You try and see nice or not...," she beamed shyly but brightly.
I was touched. I guess having encountered many unpleasant people at my workplace had made me a little jaded at work, but I realised that I had failed to look at the more positive others who always seemed to make the harsh reality of life a little more bearable. This warmhearted 'aunty', together with her kakis, showed that happiness can be as simple as sharing food with others, and always extending a smile to others. In fact, these three 'aunties' are among my favourite people at my workplace. Despite the problems they sometimes complain to me about, they never fail to flash their wrinkled but sincere smiles at me whenever they see me. They take the initiative to do little things for me, like visit my homeroom when they see my doors open, and sweep and clear the rubbish or used newspapers for me, even though they may not be assigned to my block for the day. And it's not just for me. They extend these sweet gestures to others as well. Some students might give them a headache, and do irritating things like litter or leave their footprints all over the walls (makes you wonder whether they're trying to climb walls like Spiderman), but these old 'aunties' take it upon themselves to patiently guide them by trying to talk sense into them, asking them to be more civic-minded.
The day before yesterday, I was on whole day band duty and also had to conduct enrichment workshops for graduating students in the afternoon. Some time before noon, a little Sec 1 boy, Jian Ping, in the band fell on the stairs and landed on his right wrist. He was crying cos of the pain and was afraid as he could not move his wrist. After taking care of his wrist with an ice pack, after which Jian Ping finally stopped crying, I decided to ask a colleague to take over my workshop for me as I had to take him to the doctor to check on his wrist, since both his parents were at work and I was the teacher on duty that day. I was also worried about his wrist.
Jian Ping and I walked all the way from school to near Clementi central, where there was a TCM clinic that EW recommended. The clinic was closed for lunch break, so I just led Jian Ping to a nearby coffeeshop and bought him lunch, watching him as he ate. Though disturbed by his wrist and still scared that it might not be fixed, the little boy bravely turned down my offer to feed him and tried using his left hand to feed himself. I wanted to take his mind off his injured wrist, so I started a conversation of various subjects with him. He was such a good sport and joined in the talk, responding to me very well.
It was during this conversation that I discovered what a bright and mature boy this was. He shared with me his dream of working for National Geographic in future and travelling widely as he had a passion for Geography. He recited the capital of many many countries to me, many of which I didn't even know! He told me how he had worked hard at topping the class in Chinese even though he always failed in primary school, because he did not want to be a failure at it anymore. Jian Ping also shared with me his feelings about celebrities -- how he dislikes Paris Hilton as she seems to be such a spoilt brat, and how he admires Sandra Bullock as she is rich but does her part for the poor and even chooses to live a simple life despite being able to afford luxuries. Jian Ping is also from a well-to-do family but agrees that the wealthy should contribute back to society and help others in need. In a nutshell, 13-year-old Jian Ping won my respect and admiration within that 45 minutes of conversation. I admired him even more when he behaved so well at the clinic as the Chinese physician examined his wrist and applied medication and plaster on it. He sucked in his breath several times in pain but went through the whole process so courageously (the only time he freaked out was when the doc suggested acupuncture and showed him needles that can be used to escalate the healing process. Of course, he did not take up that suggestion. :p) After the visit to the doc, instead of going home, Jian Ping said that he preferred to stay with the band till the end of the practice for the day. He couldn't play his instrument, but wanted to give the rest moral support as they were practising for an upcoming concert. What a wonderful little boy. I wish my kid in future would be like him.
Beauty is not defined by how one looks. It shines through and touches others from the heart. To me, the elderly 'aunty' cleaners and little Jian Ping are among the most beautiful people I have ever known.
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