Senior femme fatales

Haha, hope the title isn't misleading.
"Femme fatale" is a fancy phrase, something along the lines of alluring and mysterious I believe heh.

Anyway, as I think back about my past 2 semesters with T.H.E.S, I realize there are really some strong female characters among our elderly friends. Much to learn from them! Be it through hearing their past experiences, or (perhaps more potently) from their current struggles in their advanced years. Due to my (somewhat) limited time, I still haven't been able to interact with all the seniors, so I will share specifically about those I have come into more regular contact with.

Firstly, mdm K. Truth be told, most volunteers may have an impression of her being rather vocal and uninhibited in her opinions. Owing to certain medical conditions, she has been hospitalized for a rather substantial length of time. It does feel a bit disheartening that her hospitalization has inevitably taken a toll on her in more ways than one. As I visit her week-to-week, she fluctuates in her physical condition and consequently - her level of energy as well.

Nonetheless, although she may be keeping her eyes tightly-shut to conserve energy when I visit her, never once has she made bitter complaints about her condition. Sure, there may be occasional jabs against the hospital staff or much-needed requests to quell the overwhelming pain in her body. However, she remains tenacious in her battle against the various ailments. Her steely will really bubbles to the surface in the face of such unbearable conditions - kudos to her!

Secondly, our dear canto-speaking mdm. C! Really glad that she at least remembers my name haha. For those who may not know, she is rather HEAVILY involved with a variety of events initiated by the various elderly-oriented organizations. Despite her caustic demeanor and sharp-shooting ways, she is really quite soft-hearted - especially in her interactions with the students and with a specific neighbour of hers (mdm H. More on her later!)

On my most recent visit (15 Nov), I bumped into her at the void deck. She needed help in carrying her groceries, cause her arm was giving her some problems. As I walked with her, I was puzzled - cause previously I only knew of her other ailments (didn't remember any arm problem). Afterwards, she mentioned it has been periodically bothering her for a while. Despite that, she has been consistently lending a helping hand (pun not intended) to other elderlys who may require assistance. Really encouraged by these acts of service she provide; sometimes beyond her own comfort zone.

Last but not least - the aforementioned mdm H. She is nearing the big 9-0 already, and is experiencing chronic ailments in her lower limbs. She was recently admitted to the hospital too. Whilst visiting her, she has not shed any of her feisty-ness and quick quips. Nonetheless, I also saw her tender side when she mentioned her children - not wanting them to worry for her condition. It was a rather rare side of her (for me at least) that I haven't observed much previously.

Subsequently, I visited her for a short while after she was discharged. She looked visibly weakened as compared to her pre-hospitalized days, though still managing to make sharp comments at all the volunteers. Really heartened that she did not wallow in self-pity, but continued to adapt accordingly to the physical demands levied upon her body.

In short, these are just some recent episodes I had with these senior "femme fatales" ha. Life isn't always gonna turn out the way we want, but these unforeseen circumstances would serve to strengthen our ability to deal with challenges in future. The storied accounts our senior friends are apt illustrations of this truth!

-Weifeng

Work hard for exams guys!

Hi guys! I’m back with another post before I start getting real busy! Last weekend seems like the smallest group I’ve ever seen that came for visiting. It made me feel lonely when many of the regular faces were not around. Though I understand that many of you are unable to make it due to projects and exams, it’s still kind of saddening to see such a significant drop in the number of people. L

This time round, there are some guys from the Mediacorp who came to film our interactions with the elderly! Not sure what they filmed in the end because they didn’t visit my group but they sure came at a bad timing when there aren’t many volunteers around!

Anyway my partner for the day is Hui Jia and we went to visit everyone’s favourite(most likely) Uncle T.C.C! It’s my 1^st time meeting him so I’m quite nervous. Before we set off the rest were telling me to think of a nickname for myself. O.O

Well I introduced myself using my own name since I think it’s easy for the elderly to remember and Uncle T seems to like it a lot and keeps repeating it! Apparently his granddaughter has the same name as me and he started boasting about how his granddaughter is a university graduate and currently works in the airport as a clerk. But later I learnt that he does not have any children and I wonder how this granddaughter came about.

We accompanied Uncle T down for his usual dose of coffee with butter at the coffeeshop downstairs and helped to retrieve his letters on the way. I can see that he trusts the regular volunteers a lot as he passed them his keys to help him lock the door and to open the letterbox. He also requested Hui Jia to help him cut his nails later as he trusts her and that he would be afraid to ask us newer volunteers to help!

Uncle T is quite chatty and since I’m a newcomer, he asks me about my family. He then likes to tease Hui Jia about her family a lot since she’s rich apparently. He kept saying that she will get a Mercedes car next time since it rhymes with her nickname! I start teasing Hui Jia together with Uncle T, which made her feel flustered.Haha! XP

Oh and I heard that Uncle T has many “girlfriends” in the past! But perhaps because of that he splurges a lot and I can see that he kind of regrets it now, he keeps telling me to save up on my money and complains to me that he has quite little to spend from the monthly allowance given to him by the government.

Uncle T seem to notice that there are lesser people today since it’s nearing the exam period. He start questioning about each of the regulars and that’s when I heard of all the interesting nicknames the regulars have come up with! I had a hard time following up because I didn’t know who they refer to so I had to keep asking Hui Jia who is Hakao, Char Siew Bao, Lin DiDi/MeiMei and Chachamambo (plus some other normal nicknames). Halfway through the 2 other regular volunteers Engineer and Chachamambo joined us, which lifts Uncle T’s spirits up more!

On the way back we met Vernon and Luting who accompanied us back to Uncle T’s home. He had invited us back to his house as he wanted to show off the new alarm clocks he received from other volunteers! He likes them very much as the alarm plays old Chinese music (a short version) when it’s time! Although you are supposed to turn the alarm off, Uncle T actually let it continue sounding until it stops! Apparently there are 2 alarm clocks with each one set half an hour apart so in total the alarm will ring continuously for an hour. It may seem annoying to have an alarm ring for so long, but the music is actually soothing, not the noisy type, so it’s quite enjoyable. When Uncle T plays the alarm for us, he immediately became a stone statue and listens intently! We are all amused by the sight as we silently watched on, not bearing to stop his alarm. But the alarm clock is really interesting since it plays various old Chinese songs. I felt tempted to buy one for my grandma too!

Well that’s all for last week’s visit! Everyone Gambatte for the upcoming exams and be sure to come back and visit them once the busy period will be over okay!  Sad to know that I won’t be able to go for visits for the next 2 weeks though 

Lynn ^-^

It's been a really long time since I last posted my thoughts here so here I am!

I visited one of our new beneficiary last Saturday with Joelle and the new elderly is Mdm L and her long term friend/flatmate M! Mdm L is a really strong character and is always excited about sharing her stories with us. She used to be a volunteer at Touch Centre and she gets really excited when she gets the chance to shared the song and dance moves that she invented for the elderly at the centre! However, she had to stop working at the centre after she developed Glaucoma. But she remains a very cheerful and optimistic character even though she's losing her eyesight. Mdm L got a daughter and a son, her daughter is living in the US and I can tell her misses her because she kept telling me that she is coming back to visit her in 2 weeks' time!

Mdm L has a real interest in studying, she learned chinese medicine in secret even though her father was against it and she learned singing as well! She's familiar with all the tactics of singing and if you're lucky you can even get to hear her sing a few notes! I have to say her singing is super good and her voice strong and powerful despite her age of 84!

Another thing that touched me during this visit is the friendship between mdm L and M. They have known each other since young and mdm L have been taking care of M since she was 15! M is a very friendly and innocent character, which made her susceptible to people who are out to trick her of her money etc. I can tell that Mdm Lee is always worried about M getting tricked by others and she is very protective of her. And M is appreciative of this fact. Even though they don't always express their love for one another and mdm L would occasionally nag at M, I could tell they both appreciated one another for being there for one another whenever either of them needed help.

I think the take home message that I got from this visit is that no matter how depressed and tired you feel in life, you just need to get on with life and things will get better eventually. Sometimes life gets in the way of things. And you are left with regrets and feeling hard done by and in the process you spread the negativity to others. But that's just not worth it at all. Because when you're letting yourself get overwhelmed by these negativity, you're forgetting that there's a lot more things that you can do to improve the situation that you're in. All you need to do is just work with what you have because most of the time, things could have been worse. I think mdm L remained such a cheerful person partly because she knows she made a difference in people's life when she could with whatever she had. And that's enough for her.

To end off this post I'm gonna share a song from the movie "Wreck it Ralph". This movie carries a message and that message is that All of us, regardless of our size; our status; our ability; no matter how small you feel in this huge and complicated world that we live in, we all have a role to play in someone's life. So go out there and make a difference in someone's life right now. No matter how small that action is, it could be just saying a "good night" to your parents before you go to sleep tonight or just being kind to a random person who needs help.

Sometimes what this world needs is just a little more hope; a little more innocence; a little more fun, laughter, and a little more belief. There's always hope in life no matter how bleak things may seem. You just need to believe.

All the best for finals everyone :)

                                                                                                                                 - Vernon

BOO! HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

Hello fellow volunteers! Hope life has been treating you well so far! :) Last Saturday's visit warrants a special blog post because we finally have new elderly under our care to befriend! YAY!!! 

Gary and I visited a new beneficiary called Mdm L.K.K, also known as 公主 by most of the TOUCH social workers. Haha! It didn't take us long for us to get to know the reason why they picked that nickname for her. Apparently when she was young, her family was very rich. She even told us that she has never had to work before in her entire life! That is something amazing, come to think about it... But even though her family was rich, they were very altruistic and often helped out others in need by giving them financial support. I find it very commendable that people in the past really had that kampung spirit where everyone helped one another out, be it neighbours or complete strangers, and it really is something we should try to emulate in our modern lifestyle. 

This is a picture of when Mdm L.K.K was young, about 20 years old, with her three 'boyfriends' at the back. Hahaha... I wouldn't be surprised if she actually had many suitors back then, given how pretty she looked last time. Even my mum said she's very beautiful when I showed her the photo. Lol.

Nearing the end of the visit, Mdm L.K.K had to prepare to go to church so we left slightly earlier to visit another elderly. That's when we decided to go visit our other two new elderly! Mdm L. and her roommate Mary! Vernon and Joelle were already there before us. We had a great time over at their place. They had an electric piano at their home, so I shamelessly decided to play the only song that I knew which was "Doe-a-deer". And it was quite bad... haha... But Mary said I played very well, and Joelle got jealous! Hahaha! Jk... If Joelle you're reading this don't be mad. xD Both of them also shared with us many interesting (and at times sad) stories about their lives and we were very grateful that they shared these precious memories with us. 

That Saturday visit was a really enjoyable and meaningful visit for me. What left the biggest impression on me was the fact that even though our new beneficiaries barely knew us, they were so willing to share their experiences and knowledge with complete strangers. Perhaps that is what I really like about them. Perhaps as we grow older, we yearn for the chance to share with the younger generation our wisdom and experience. I'm sure it actually makes them happy that they get to share their whole life story to someone else. This reason alone makes our visits all the more worthwhile, because by providing a listening ear we are, in a sense, helping them achieve that goal. 

Alright! That's all from me! If you guys are interested to get to meet our new friends, do come down for our future visits! See y'all next time and all the best for your finals! =]

Andy

This period of time marks two years since my first visit to THES, and I would like to say that

1) Time flies.

2) I am really old!!!!!!!!!! (but I know I am not the oldest)


3) Volunteering still humbles me like nothing else.
Even after two years, I learn something new on every single trip.

I am definitely not a kind person by nature. I still am not, and don't envision myself to become one.

But I do know that there is a lack of love in way too many places. I do see loneliness, fear and sometimes resignation.

My fellow volunteers, however, have convinced me that there might just be enough love to go around in this world. What a wonderful thought that is!!!
Even after two years, I don't get used to it. I don't ever begin to take this compassion for granted, because it is scarce in much of anywhere else.

Special shoutout to Kahsuan: Thank you for always inspiring me with your super kind heart and dedication, although I will never get used to your noise (hehe just kidding~~)

I hope you guys never lose this passion, your genuine hearts, for the world needs many more of "you"s around!! And don't ever stop being funny and epic and young either!!!

 

Ending off this post with a familiar sight:

- LiJia

Hi guys!! Being a new volunteer, I’m here to share my experience with the THES seniors! Last week, I went to visit Mdm T.A.K and Mdm C.Y.L together with the other newer volunteers Pei Yi and Jun Yang. It is a little disappointing that we are only able to spend one hour with each beneficiary because I was already kind of used to dedicating 2 hours with each of them.

Mdm T was as cheerful as always, she always seem to love our company. We help her with the mopping of the floor and the cleaning of the windows. This is my second time visiting her and I realized that these are the weekly household chores that us volunteers do for her. Mdm T has poor eyesight and she can barely make out what is in front of her so I’m amazed that she can still keep her house clean by herself, with the exception of us having to mop the floor for her. As we were cleaning we tried our best to strike a conversation with her. She can only speak Hokkien so the 3 of us, who are not fluent in Hokkien, struggle to hold a proper conversation with her. But as usual, she laughs it off and finds it pretty amusing that we are making an effort to converse with her. I really hope that there will be a workshop held for us to improve on our dialects!

The last time I visited her 2 weeks ago, one of the volunteers from another organization has given her a bottle of honey barbequed sauce. While explaining to her what it is used for, we noticed that the expiry date of the sauce is in a month’s time so we have adviced her to throw it away one it expires just in case it turns bad. While cleaning up the place, I chanced upon the opened bottle of sauce and asked her if she had tried it. She told us that she used it on chicken meat but she finds it abit too sweet for her liking. Apparently she finds it a waste to dump the sauce once it expires so she’s trying to use as much as she can before throwing it away.

We also helped her to look through her letters, which mostly consist of flyers. She seems keen about the advertisements and asks us what promotions are available. This time, she also showed us the Pioneer Generation package she received from the government. She requested us to help her check which of the clinics around her area has subsidies so she was pleased to know that the one she frequents is included inside.

Mdm T told us that she does not go out very often due to her disability to see clearly, hence it is inconvenient for her to travel far or to new places. She would be unfamiliar with her surroundings, which made her fearful actually. But she will be quite bored to be at home all day since she does not even have a television to watch, as she is unable to see, nor is she able to understand Chinese either.  I have offered to take her down for walks once again, but she declined my offer, saying that she do not wish to trouble others and become a burden. But I have never once thought that bringing the elderly around would be troublesome so I hope Mdm T can be a little more selfish and allow us to bring her down more often. She does seem to know that we have another beneficiary to tend to so she kept telling us to go and help out the other elderly instead.

After we left Mdm T’s home we went ahead to visit Mdm C. This is the first visit for all three of us so I thought that it will be awkward for all of us. But we manage to warm up with her quickly. Mdm C is very friendly and she noticed that we are all newcomers to her home. She only wanted us to do some simple cleaning of the windows. I wanted to offer more help seeing that she is wheelchair bound so she would probably have problems cleaning her house but she insisted that she is fine.

Later we sat down to chat and we soon started talking about language barriers between youths and the elderly, which brings us to the topic of asking her to be our Cantonese teacher! She taught us some phrases that we are keen to learn, and I made an effort to jolt down what we learn into my phone’s notes so that I can show off a little to my grandma. Mdm C seems quite keen to teach us but it’s hard to learn so much in a short span of time so we had to make do with the few standard phrases for now.

I found out that Mdm C is a smoker when I asked her about the ash tray on the coffee table. And initially I thought that it belongs to the tenant that is staying with her! Apparently Mdm C used to be an avid smoker who cannot survive without 2 packets of cigarettes a day, but now she does not smoke as much, which is quite a relief. She told us about how she bought tobacco leaves from the market now and rolls them in a piece of paper to make her own cigar because it is cheaper than buying a packet.

As we are leaving, Mdm C told us to drop by again when we are free. Even though we are all newcomers, Mdm C likes having us around. This leaves a deep impression on me as I realized that these beneficiaries really enjoy our company and look forward to our visits every week. And they actually remember us well! I remember Mdm T commenting that she can recognize my voice because I have visited her before. It makes me want to visit them regularly because despite their age, they will remember each and every one of us thus I feel that they will surely be sad if we stopped visiting them one day. And it certainly makes my heart ache because I’m only able to visit the elderly once every 2 weeks.

But what’s for sure is that I will definitely treasure every visit that I go for and keep every moment spent with the elderly locked in my heart J   

Lynn ^-^

Volunteering changes you – even when you stop volunteering!

Went for the first orientation visit this academic year and boy does it feel good to be back! I took sort of a one year break from CSC since I’ve stepped down due to academic reasons last academic year. During the few times I was back, things felt different. I couldn’t explain the feeling then and I thought it was because of the anxiety/stress about finding a job/internship, but I realized it now: volunteering changes you, even when you stop volunteering!

Why do I say so?

We may not notice it, but as we volunteer, subtle things are changing. Our perspectives on life, things that can make us happy, things we can tolerate, things that make us satisfied, etc. When I just started reading sociology last year, I took on a very bitter perspective on life. I started to see volunteering in very critical ways and kept telling myself “there is a season for everything” and it was not my season to be an active volunteer. I stayed away for most CSC projects unless people really needed help. During the few times I was there for visits, I wasn’t satisfied. I kept this disappointment to myself because I know that there is this void in my heart but I couldn’t pinpoint what was causing it. I felt very dissonant because going for visits and being part of the T.H.E.S family had always meant something special to me. I thought maybe I needed to catch a tv drama and I clocked a total of 9 dramas in a month (record high) but the restless feeling still lingered.

And I made the worse decision of all – I chose to ignore this dissonance.

It was only months later, i.e., now, after the first orientation visit, that I found out what went wrong. When I was volunteering actively, the spirit of volunteerism had already changed me without my knowing. Maybe being in the committee helped; I constantly stepped out of my comfort zone, was more grateful for little things, saw the good in people, could laugh at the silliest things… in short, I was happier. I’m not sure how this orientation visit had differed from the few visits I went for in the last AY; maybe it was because I was assigned to visit Mdm Cheong and she was one of the few elderly I was closer to last time, and seeing how she lost so much weight in old age makes me feel like I should try to spend more time with her. 有种想要疼惜她的感觉 (':

“瘦才比较美嘛!” Being the cheerful elderly she has always been since I knew her, she didn’t seem to think much of her weight loss. Went to her place so many times before but because she always directed the chores, I’ve never really noticed the stuff she puts on display which we weren’t told to clean, and so I’ve never asked about them before. But last Saturday, I noticed a bag of stuff placed in the display cupboard and found out that it was actually 4 months supply of medicine! It made me realize the importance of being an observant and emphatic volunteer who doesn't take what the elderly portray at surface level. It was very heartening to see that despite having to eat so many different types of medicine each day, she still took on a positive outlook on life. I felt shameful for feeling bitter about life the whole of last year when I already had so much more than others. I thought about the things that made me happy and things that I could be/have been happy for, and suddenly I felt grateful.

Thank you Mdm Cheong making me realize this (:

To the new volunteers: if you’ve decided to embark on this learning journey, be prepared to be transformed into a whole new self!

To the old volunteers: There is always more comfort in familiarity so thank you for being the familiar faces I see when I go back for visits! I hope that you guys will never have to go through what I went through last AY because that jaded feeling really isn’t very pleasant, so keep going for visits because I’m sure you guys have already been transformed! Hope to see you guys there when I’m back again! :D

P/S: special mention to kai him – thank you for remembering the first time you came for visit (and thankfully it was with me)! It was only when you brought it up that I remembered how visits were like to me in the past and realizing what had changed. Owe you one! J

With lots of love and gratitude,

Camy

My group, consisting of Xinhong, Weifeng, Jiamin and I, visited Mdm C.S.K first. Most of us already know Mdm C.S.K as our adorable "Commander" and she proved her prowess again by telling us that she wanted to do a mini spring cleaning of the stuff stored away behind her bed the moment we stepped into her house.

During the process, we got "told off" quite a bit because we were too eager/fast-paced for her liking and didn't know she had further instructions or preferences. I found it very amusing whenever she tell us off and Xinhong and I just kept laughing and grinning (behind her back). I think it was a rather new experience for Xinhong since she only visited Mdm C.S.K once or twice before and is not exactly used to her style but she still did a very good job under Mdm C.S.K's command :) On the other hand, I have visited Mdm C.S.K numerous times and have gotten used to her style. However, what struck me in particular that day whereby I was "told off" more than usual was that despite being commanded to do this and that and being "told off", I actually really like our interaction. It didn't feel like a typical beneficiary-volunteer kind of relationship whereby she is very 客气 with us but one that felt more like a grandparent-grandchild kind of relationship, like how my grandma would also make a fuss and "tell me off" if I help her do her stuff wrongly (:p). I think visits at Mdm C.S.K's place might be quite overwhelming for people who do not visit her as much since her style is really different from the rest of the elderly but it is very heartening to see Xinhong and Jiamin, who do not visit Mdm C.S.K a lot, doing their best in accomodating Mdm C.S.K and continuing to be cheerful and eager (though I can tell they were suffering quite a bit from their expressions haha). I think every visit is not just a lesson learnt from our elderly, but also from our fellow volunteers. :)

So we helped to change the newspaper wrappings and layering, cleaned the mirror, swept and wiped the area behind her bed and also did the usual chores like wiping the windows and chairs while chatting with Mdm C.S.K. She asked us if we watched the commercial on TV. She was referring to the event held by Mediacorp which brought them out to have fun (you can watch the video on our Facebook page). She said when she went around downstairs, a lot people told/asked her about her prominent appearance on TV and she was very proud and happy about it. I asked her if the Mediacorp artistes are nice and she answered that it is not so much about whether the artistes themselves are nice or not but the event and the act of going down to bring them out and dance and sing for/with them is already very kind and she is very appreciative and grateful for that. 

While putting the boxes back to the area behind her bed, she opened one to check what is inside and saw that her wedding pictures were inside. She told us that her husband was 18 years older and her and she married when she was 20. Someone asked her what she saw in her husband which made her decide to marry him. She said that he was an honest man and not a playboy (花心) and did not have any bad habit. She married him after meeting him for 2 months.

Another memorable snippet of our conversation was that (if I did not remember wrongly), Weifeng volunteered to do the dirtier chore since he was the only guy and Mdm C.S.K responded that nowadays 男女平等 (gender equality) already, whatever guys can do, girls can do as well. I was quite surprised by her response and how modern her mindset is since we tend to think that elderly are still rather traditional. This is like a reminder to not stereotype elderly as being 老古董 (old fogey), close-minded and etc. and I think it is important because it may affect our interaction with them. A year with THES has changed the way I interact with elderly. I no longer hesitate to talk about "modern" stuff and I think it is very good that we update them also, because to some elderly who do not have TV nor read the newspaper, and those who have lost their sight, we are like their window to the world outside.

Unknowingly, time past rather quickly while doing the chores but Mdm C.S.K still needed help with the mopping of floor so Weifeng stayed while the rest of us left to visit Mdm C.Y.L.

On the way, we walked past Mr T.C.C having his coffee with the other volunteers. I thought we should drop by to say hello to him, especially since Jiamin and I were together. For Mr T has nicknames for everyone to help him better remember us since he can't see us. Jiamin's nickname is Siew Mai (due to the escalation of mispronunciation) and we 将错就错 and I decided to call myself Har Gow. Hence we are the SiewMai HarGow duo :D and Mr T really remembers us for it. It has been barely a month since our nicknames have been decided but he was asking me where was Siew Mai when I visited him last week.

We then went to Mdm C.Y.L's house and we helped her to tape the flooring, which she explained that the floorpaper always tears due to her wheelchair continuously scraping against the usual spots. We chatted with her and were on the topic of NDP and Jiamin suggested we sing the National Anthem for her but in the end we were too shy to sing together so we didn't. I guess this shyness and embarrassment issue is one hurdle which I have yet to pass but I shall work on it :)

In the end Jiamin decided we should play songs for her and we asked her what songs she used to listen to and she said Cantonese songs. So we randomly threw in names of Canto Singers that we know of such as 张国荣 (Leslie Cheung)，梅艳芳 (Anita Mui)，郭富城 (Aaron Kwok) etc. We also mentioned 凤飞飞 (Feng Fei Fei)，邓丽君 (Teresa Teng). She was telling us how some of them passed away early. It is heartening to see her being enthusiastic on topics which was of her time. 

We were talking about how Aaron Kwok is still single though he is in his forties and the conversation escalated to difference between males and females in their forties, women giving birth in theirs forties and how some women quite old already but still very hiao (online definition: indecent, whorish, sexy) and before we know it, we were telling her about Fann Wong giving birth on National Day and her pregnancy photo shoot hahaha. We googled and showed her the pictures. 

Something which struck me most was when she said "有空就来看我" (Visit me when you are free) when we were leaving. I don't think I remembered her saying it so straightforwardly in the past when I see her. But as the year pass by, she seems increasingly eager for us to visit her. It is a good thing since it shows our increasing bond and friendship but I do hope that it is not because she is increasingly lonely. It makes me feel kind of sad that most of the time they are alone and can't do a lot of things and every week we are only there for 1 hour for each of them. In the past, when I have to converse with them I usually ask standard questions, like about family, about their past and stuff. But I think by now they would probably have become quite bored of these topics so I am trying my best to talk about other stuff with them (that's why I updated her about Fann Wong hahahah).

It has been another enriching Saturday morning and I look forward to seeing everyone again :D

Mei Na

My group visited Mdm T. and Mdm W. today.


I actually got to see Mdm T. down at the void deck collecting her meal while I was doing facilitation. She was sitting there all by herself, and when Xue Li and I came over to say hi, her face immediately lit up and she gave her usual hearty chuckle. For those who do not know, Mdm T.'s eyesight is rather poor so she didn't know who we were. I think she was genuinely surprised when she heard my voice and I could tell that she knew we were NUS students. This really goes to show how much we mean to her because she could have just as easily said something like, " 你们是谁?" but she didn't. During the actual visit, it was like the usual practice, where we would do some simple household chores for her and talk to her. To be honest, despite her poor eyesight, Mdm T. is still very independent about the house as she still does her own cooking and cleaning. Sometimes, as we talk, she will lament about the fact that she doesn't like to go out of her house because she cannot really see where she's going. However, whenever we asked whether she wants to go down and just take a walk or sit at the coffee shop, she's very reluctant because she doesn't want to be a burden to us. After all my visits with her, I can tell that Mdm T. is one of the most humble and considerate people I have ever met. Even though I would prefer that she doesn't see herself as a liability to others, I really admire her personality and strength of character.

We then visited Mdm W. and that was my second visit. Once again, Victoria was the only canto-speaking person in my group so she did most (okay, fine.. ALL) of the talking. I was trying to be an active listener and although I couldn't understand what was being exchanged between them, I was at least trying to infer what was being said. And I must say it was quite fun for the rest of us trying to guess what they're talking about. We then started watching TV and that proved to be more interactive, surprisingly. Even though we may be hampered by our language barrier, our thoughts are still synonymous with each other when everyone laughed on what was showing on TV. It was sad to bid farewell at the end, but I could really see that Mdm W. appreciated our company. 

As the semester has just started and work begins to pile up, I really hope that every one of us here will take a step back and just take a deep breath. I shall not deny that studies are important, but I also believe that what you do with your life is equally as important. Our existence on this Earth and the things we do make a difference to the lives of others, however small that may be. Be it helping the elderly or less fortunate, spending your time well at homes for children or persons with disabilities, going for blood donation drives or simple acts like giving up your seat to others, all these little actions work towards a common goal, and that is to make our society a better place to live in for everyone.

Andy

Reflection on 19 July's visit

Today, our group visited Mdm C. and Mr. T.

Mdm C. was quite cheerful. Initially she assumed that her clock was damaged because it refused to work after she had renewed the battery. However, Jun Da later found that the clock was actually OK. It was because Mdm C. had equipped the battery wrongly. Mdm C. was also amused at this finding and she laughed at herself.

Independence is a respectable feature that I should learn from Mdm C. After Jun Da had ‘fixed’ the clock. One of us offered to help hang the clock onto the wall but Mdm C. refused it. Although she was not as mobile as us, she insisted that she should do what she could instead of bothering others all the time. Finally, having experienced some difficulties reaching the nail on the wall, she managed to hang the clock by herself. Watching her finishing this, I was questioning myself whether I could be as strong-minded and independent as Mdm C. when I am aged.

Mdm C.’s hospitality reminded me of my own grandparents. She offered us biscuits and chrysanthemum tea in rewards of our effort to do some simple chores for her. Her insist on us taking the biscuits was similar to my grandparents’. Every time when I visit them, they just keep offering me food. Sometimes, I feel that they do not know how to express their love to me. Feeding us is the way that they express their care.

Mr. T. was quiet and friendly. He was watching China Voice when we arrived. He explained the TV program to us. I felt that it was harder to initiate topics with him compared to Mdm C. We experienced periods of silence sitting on the floor. However, my groupmates told me that silence was not a wrong situation when visiting the elderly. Some of them are not very chatty and they are actually comfortable with the silence. They told me that for those volunteers who had been on this project for one year or more, these elderly were similar to their own grandparents. We do not need to talk all the time when we are with our grandparents. Mostly, they are content with pure company from us.

This was the second time that I joined the official visit of T.H.E. Seniors. Visiting the elderly was a beneficial experience for me. Besides, I made new friends with other volunteers. As a freshie, I received a lot of useful info from them during our chats. I do appreciate their advice to me either on doing community service or learning in NUS. I hope to meet them in future visits.

Siyao

First sub-committee experience in NUS - 28th May Major Outing

My involvement in Major Outing as a publicity sub-committee member was a fulfilling journey. My previous involvement in a committee was in JC. It has been quite a while and I was excited in this new role.

I started off making publicity poster and recruiting volunteers. It was a bit of a challenge because of the tight schedule. I also have to refresh my Photoshop skills because I had not used the program for a year. Nevertheless, we managed to pull it off because of the great support the volunteers gave and I am really hearten and thankful for that.

In addition, I also helped in the hands-on of the volunteers' gift and program's logistics. This was similar to stuff that I did when young as I used to make things out of raw material as a pastime. I enjoyed doing this as much as I did when I was a child. What was more significant was the deeper friendship forged with the committee members throughout these sessions.

After much preparation, we were ready to entertain the elderly. I was the photographer for the Major Outing and I was responsible to capture their smiles. It wasn't too difficult for me because the volunteers were engaging and entertaining and the elderly enjoyed themselves.

I knew our effort for the past month paid off when the elderly displayed their generosity in their appreciation and couldn't stopped thanking us as we waved good-bye to them. We promised that there are more of such event in future.

After the event, I made Thank-You posters for both the volunteers and the sponsors. These were then emailed to them. They helped to make this event possible and we are really grateful for that.

Wee Chong

Reflections of First Visit to THEs

With the kind assistance of CSC leaders, my colleagues and I from the Student Service Centre had the opportunity to visit some elderly beneficiaries on 20 June 2014.  It was the first for most of us.

My group, led by Shuang Shuang, visited Mr T. Mr T. has lost his eyesight and was jubilant when he heard us.  His house was kept spick and span. He missed Shuang Shuang when she was away the prvious week in KL.  Mr T. also asked about Lily and other volunteers. 

Our 2 young, handsome volunteers patiently guided Mr T. to a coffeeshop for his weekly coffee with butter.  Unlce Tay passed his house and letterbox keys to Shuang Shuang to retrive his letters. Later, he passed some cash to her to buy some groceries on his behalf.  The high level of trust for the volunteers is evident.  Our young volunteers tried their best to chat with Mr T. in his dialect.  Kudos to their indomitable spirit.  Since I was older and deemed to be more conversant in dialects, I tried to explain the letters and chat with Mr T. in my limited Hokkien and CMI Teochew.  Mr T. knew the kampung that I used to live when I was a child so we had a nostalgic conversation.      

Mr T. shared with us his hardship during the Japanese Occupation - no food and the atrocities committed, and in the 70s after British forces left Singapore - young men had no jobs and education was a privilege.  He lit up as he relished how well Singapore is doing now.  Though he commented people tend to throw away things that are still in good condition freely now.

After the hour long chat, we guided Mr T. back to his house and bid farewell to him.

From the short 3 hours, I have learnt plenty from the visit. 

Firstly, I'm truly impressed by the commitment of the volunteers.  Young men and women like them would have lots of interesting activities or courses to partake in.  Yet they are generious in their time and efforts to this group of elderly friends.  To realise the value of contributing to a worthy cause and sticking to it at this young age is commendable. I find renewed energy to my identified worthy cause.

Secondly, as Mr T. recounted the difficult times, it sent a strong message - the vulnerability of a country's peace and stability.  Our generations were fortunate not to go through the tumultuous times.  For the sake of this, future and past generations in their retirement, we have the duty to strengthen our nation, esp. in the area of defense and our economy.  In whatever we do, we should preserve the social fabric and build a united  nation.

Thirdly, the importance of a govenment to give a helping hand to the needy in our society.  As our young volunteers graduate and embark on their careers, some in shaping policies for the nation, I wish that they would always spare a thought for the underprivlege in the society. With that said, I shall pay my taxes promptly. :)-

My very best wishes to all T.H.E.Seniors volunteers and hope to join you soon.

Poh Suan

Two Cents Worth From A Newbie!

On behalf of Student Service Centre, I would like to express my appreciation to the members of T.H.E Seniors, for providing our team with this wonderful opportunity to be part of this admirable voluntary program. I was deeply impressed by the way the event was managed and it obvious that the group was not new to what they were doing. The students' rapport with the elderly, and the reciprocating trust and fondness displayed by the elderly is clearly the result of T.H.E Seniors' unwavering passion and commitment. Bonds built upon not just a couple of months, but years of strong altruistic belief in making a difference.

With Singapore's population hitting a median age of 40 in 2013 and no signs of slowing  down, ageing population issues are seemly inevitable. Voluntary groups like T.H.E Seniors are important and much needed to add color to the lives of these elderly. It is also gratifying to learn that many of the elderly within the Geylang Bahru community were engaged in various events, excursions and festive celebration organised by various voluntary and welfare bodies. This is proof of the high energy level that they still possess. Maybe, (*if it hasn't been implemented) T.H.E Seniors can also introduce some learning/sharing elements ( Any topic, hobbys, tech, health)  into their weekly visits. Lifelong learning is an important aspect of ageing well, as it helps them gain confidence, be in sync with the society and keep their minds sharp. It doesn't always have to be the volunteers teaching the elderly, instead it is also fun if the elderly can share with the volunteers. The potential is limitless!

Daniel Chia - Student Service Centre

Reflection after visiting my best friends in THEs

On the week of 20 June, my group consisting of Lily, Kim Jio Kueh , ah hai, and 2 other volunteer visited Mdm T. During the visit, we help her with the chores and chat with her about the gourmet delicacies.

It has been a while since I last blogged. I am grateful of what TOUCH has taught me and all the friendship that I have forged throughout the months. One of the friends who would leave a lasting impression on me is Mdm T. Forever gleaming with a radiant smile and entertaining us with her experiences, I find that she is probably the bravest and most optimistic elderlies in THE. Despite gradually losing her eyesight and hearing, she has not ceased doing her daily activities.

Looking at the obstacles ahead of our lives, we should not easily bow down to the challenges; instead, we should look at the inspiring elderlies in our neighbourhood. Their optimism and bravery will motivate us to embrace failure and to live life to the fullest. I will always look forward to visit the best friends I gained in TOUCH. 

- Edwin Yeo

7th June Visit (Part 2)

Hello!

Last Saturday was my first experience volunteering with T.H.E Seniors. I visited Mr T. and my group brought him down to a nearby coffeeshop for a chit-chat session where he got to drink his favourite coffee with butter. I was amused by such a preference but later found out that it was common for people to add butter to black coffee in the past to enjoy a richer taste of it.

Uncle T. was excited to see us as he could take a walk out of his house with the volunteers and enjoy his cup of coffee. Sadly, the usual coffeeshop he prefers to go to is closed. Nevertheless, this did not dampen his spirit and he was very eager to share his stories of his youth and thanked us for bringing him out.

All in all, it was a meaningful time to listen to his stories. Due to communication barrier (I couldn’t understand hokkien), I had to rely on my group members to translate some parts of the conversation. It’s time for me to learn how to converse in dialect! Hope to visit Uncle Tay again soon! :)

- Xue

-    

7th June Visit

On 7th June, I visited mdm. K for the first time! At first, I was unsure if there was going to be any cultural or language barrier - but it turned out on the contrary. Despite being of rather frail health in recent months, mdm. K was massively welcoming and chatty although it was my first time meeting her. I was pleasantly surprised by the neatly organized nature of her house, as it was very clean and tidy.

Through the duration of the visit, we spent much time listening to her recent stories, and got to share marginally about our own stories and opinions. Furthermore, it was only her birthday in that week, so we got to have a mini-surprise birthday celebration. Nonetheless, the small cake was not consumable for her owing to her medical condition - so she graciously allowed us to consume it on her behalf. She did have a small plastic bear to keep as a memento, together with photos of the occasion. These things and the time spent probably was more meaningful than the cake itself!

In conclusion, I had a meaningful time getting to know mdm. K for the first time, and having the privilege of witnessing and partaking in a mini birthday celebration. Looking forward to future catchup opportunities with her!

Graduate Mdm. H

Hello!

Last Saturday was my second visit to Mdm. H's house. My group comprised of Camy, Pin Jin and Tina. Sadly, Mdm. H doesn't remember me haha. I had a deep impression of her from my first visit because she could speak a multitude of languages and dialects; English, Mandarin, Malay, Hokkien, Cantonese. I also remembered she was very peculiar about the position of her things in the house as she kept reminding us how we must put everything back to where they belonged after we have shifted them. This visit was no different, except that she seemed less lively and looked frailer than before.

We were told to bring Mdm. H down for a haircut. However, she told us she was not feeling too good so she would prefer to go the following week instead. Thus, we cleaned her house like usual. She told me to clean the table with photos, so Camy took the cloth out from Mdm. H's trolley but then she screamed because cockroaches appeared! I saw them too and we both freaked out so we had to ask Pin Jin who was the only guy to go sweep that area. The cockroaches seemed to have found a new hiding place so we gave up searching for them. I started cleaning the table, photo frames and window frame while Tina and Pin Jin swept and mopped the floor. Camy was told by Mdm. H to just sit beside her and chat while we do the work hahaha.

Since Victoria told us about the scrap-booking project, we took some photos from Mdm. H's photo albums. So let the photos do the talking!

Graduate Mdm. H! (Credits: Camy)
Truth:
Camy: 你有读大学啊?
Mdm. H: 没有啦! 我的女儿给我的, 我就拿来穿咯!

Peranakan Mdm. H!
This is the photo hung up on her wall. Sorry for the reflection!

高贵的 Mdm. H!

Mdm. H enjoying her durians in her house in Malacca!

One of Mdm. H's few candid shots when she smiled so happily and naturally.

Mdm. H and her late husband.

This visit was another reflective one as it showed me how the elderly can turn from being so lively to so quiet in just a few months. It might not have been noticeable to those who visited Mdm. H more often, but to me it was quite apparent. She was weaker, though she still prided herself in the languages she was able to speak and I find that super cool. She enjoyed our company, though she got tired towards the end so we left early for her to rest.

I have enjoyed my every visit since the start. No doubt we as volunteers come to accompany the elderly living here, but as we talk and understand each individual elderly better, we ourselves tend to be the ones to have received more instead, after having heard the wise words of each of them as we listen to their valuable life experiences and lessons learnt. I will never get tired of listening to these lovely people.

I look forward to many more visits ahead, to Uncle T, Mdm. T, Mdm. H and the other elderly of Touch!

P.S. Mdm. H stated that she wants more guys to visit her!!!

- Joelle

Visiting Mdm K

Last Saturday (24/5) was the first time that I joined the T.H.E Seniors volunteering programme. I’d like to thank Jiemin for introducing me to the programme because I really enjoyed the visit.

Mdm K was very active and talked a lot. We did not do any housework for her since her house was very clean. We just sat on the floor and listened to stories of her recent visit to the hospital and her family, traveling and love affairs. It seemed that her lung and stomach conditions troubled her a lot but she was still quite positive towards life. Due to the pain in her throat, she cannot eat normally, so the doctor recommended putting in a tube to feed her. However, the process of getting the tube in is very painful so she kept putting it off. We tried to encourage her to get the tube because otherwise she cannot eat. At the end, she was still reluctant to put in the tube but somewhat accepted it. She also mentioned death during our chat. However, she also talked about how ‘naughty’ she was in the hospital and how she teased all the nurses. It sounded that she had not given up on her life. I really hope that she could try to adapt to the life with the tube and never give up fighting against her diseases.

She likes social workers and the Christians who have offered her a lot of help during her stay in hospital. Although she is alone in Singapore, she does not want to move to Malaysia where part of her family lives.

She got really excited when we asked her about the stories behind her old photos. It seemed that she was happy that we were there listening to her stories. She shook our hands and gave each of us a warm hug when we left.

I think sometimes what the elderly need is just someone patient enough to listen to them. They have numerous life stories and experiences to share but there is just no one whom they can talk to. Reflecting on my own behavior during the visit, I think I could have ask more questions about those interesting points in her narrative. I was afraid that I might touch on some sensitive topics. However, I felt that when we asked questions and showed interest in her stories, her face lit up and her voice became brighter. I do not know if there are people that she can talk with besides us. It seemed that she welcomes us visiting her because she had kept talking without stopping the moment we arrived at her home.

Visiting her also reminded me of my grandparents. Since I do not live in the same city as them, I rarely have chance to talk to them. When I visit them during festivals, they keep asking me questions about my life and offering me food. I have never really sat down to listen to their stories. Basically, I learned about my grandparents’ lives from my parents. This summer, I will try to find a chance to visit my grandparents and talk with them. I suddenly realized the urgency of listening to them since one of my grandfathers has already passed away. I have alot of questions to ask them. Where have they been to? How did they marry? What were the biggest challenges in their life? What are their perceptions on happiness? How do they understand life and death? Suddenly I feel that every elderly is a treasure of experience and wisdom. They are not people who are weak and need help but have a whole life to share with the younger generations.

The visit was a rewarding and enjoyable experience for me. I would like to join more of T.H.E Seniors' activities in the coming few years.

Zhang Siyao

A fresh-’girl’ of NUS from China

Visit to Mdm T’s

Hello everyone!

Last Saturday marks my third visit to the elderly beneficiaries of Kallang TOUCH Seniors’ Activity Centre. Being relatively new here, I haven’t really had the chance to interact with most of the elderly (So far I only interacted with 2 of the elderly, Mr T and Mdm H). Last week, I was grouped together with our fellow CSC volunteers –Clement, Yin Min and Kai Him and we visited our elderly beneficiary, Mdm T.

The first thing that struck me as I entered Mdm T’s house was its cleanliness. Everything there was so organized and clean - food was placed neatly hanging from what seems to be re-shaped clothes hangers (She later confirmed that she made these hangers herself), the furniture were arranged in a nice order and the floor seem to be sparkling clean; Definitely much neater and cleaner as compared to the other elderly beneficiaries’ and my own grandparents’ home. After entering her home, some of us proceeded to perform her household chores first (Mopping, sweeping) before joining the rest of us who were then chatting with Mdm T. From my chat with Mdm T, I find her to be very endearing and optimistic. Never does she fails to give the occasional cheerful chuckle as she told us her experiences from her workplaces during her younger days,  her“ fried rice cooking techniques ”  which she seem so enthusiastic about ,and perhaps the stories about how she obtained the multiple plastic fans she had. Even though she has some vision impairment, thus not being able to see our facial expressions properly when conversing, she never fails to maintain her enthusiasm and the cheerful demeanour throughout the conversations that our group had. Moreover, she was genuinely interested to hold more conversations, always being the constant initiator of interesting conversation that I enjoy being a part of. Sometimes, Mdm T would rush to defend some of our volunteers in instances when jokes are being made amongst ourselves, or tell us not to be offended by her over-enthusiasm in sharing with us her stories. These small actions made me feel that Mdm T has actually built a bond with our volunteers and that she cares for our well-being. I hope that we(future/new/existing volunteers) would continue to care for Mdm T, just like how she cared for us.

That’s all from me. It was a rather meaningful visit to Mdm T’s house and I definitely wish to visit her again soon. Also, I hope to get to know more about our elderly beneficiaries in the weeks to come!

Jie Yang 

Mr T C.C, Official visit 24 May

     Today my group consisting of Shuangshuang, Edwin, Junda and me went to visit Mr T C.C. When we arrived at his doorstep, the front door was slightly opened and Mr T was sitting at the sofa. He was obviously waiting for us. We called out his name, he stood up quickly and approached the door. Being aware of his wounded leg, we reminded him to take his time and don't rush. The wound at his left shin had more or less healed but the lower half of the leg is swollen and Mr T remarked that it still hurts. Mr T had visited the doctor thrice and finished the prescribed medicine so he was worried that his leg may be amputated. Perhaps, because of his eyesight Mr T tends to be pessimistic every now and then. Now that he is injured and he can't attend to his own wound or at least see how his wound is like, this feeling of helplessness hit him even harder. We comforted him, patted his shoulder and told him to cheer up so that his wound may recover quicker.

     We were reminded to take photo of photos, this is for the scrap book THES will be making for each elderly to help them encapsulate their memories. We asked Mr Tay if he have any photos, without any hesitation he took out 3 albums from his drawer to show us. Flipping through the albums, we were quite surprised that there wasn't many photos of Mr T. Instead, there were many pictures of his female friends and perhaps his sister. As Mr T enjoy his butter coffee, we asked him who were those ladies. Mr T said they were his friends whom he used to go out with. We teased Mr T and asked him for the secret of going out with 3 ladies at once. Mr T told us that it was easy because he used to own a car and every time they eat out he would always treat them. Edwin was a little skeptical that Mr T had a car even though we saw photos of a car in the album. Shuangshuang clarified with Mr T and he said out his car plate number as proof. We checked the photo and sure enough the car plate number tallied. Shuangshuang was very impressed and the guys teased her by "judging" her. We asked Mr T what kind of girl he like. He admitted that he was quite picky, he doesn't like girls who are too "big" or too "small" and ideally she should look like Lin Dai, a famous actress-singer in the 50s and early 60s. He quickly added that, we should not be too particular about the appearance and what matters more is compatibility. His advice felt like a personal experience sort of advice and true indeed.

Ah Hai  


          

T.H.E.SENIORS Major Outing 2014

Dear volunteers,

T.H.E.SENIORS Major Outing 2014 is back to kick start your summer vacation!

What better way to spend your holidays than basking in nature's splendor with our elderly in HortPark for our second major outing of the academic year on Wednesday, 28th May from 9am - 1pm!

To sign up, please click on the link below:

http://tinyurl.com/thes-majorouting2

Slots will be filled on a first-come-first served basis and a confirmation email will be sent to you upon successful registration. 

Hesitate no more, sign ups close on 23rd May 2014, Friday, 2359h. We look forward to seeing you there!!! 

10 MAY 回家走走

Hello!!!!!!!

It has been a long long time since I last blogged. Good to be back! I really miss the elderly alot :'( It always feels comfortable and good to be back, to see all the new faces and of course to have short catch up with the old ones. I was grouped with Jiemin and we were assigned to visit Mdm C.M. and Mdm T.A.K.

We went to visit Mdm T.A.K. first. We swept and mopped her floor while talking to her. Topics covered were: jia ba buay(if she has eaten), whether the food was nice, the hot weather and how bathing just doesn't help, her broom bristles are coming out and littering her floor, Mothers' day celebration by TOUCH, how she prefer to fan herself rather than using electronic fan AND SHE REMEMBERED how I screamed and scared her when I saw a cockroach after lifting up a cloth. She was like ,"Oh it was you!" I still remembered how I scared her and other volunteers. But it was a natural reaction :p Whenever I see the tap at the elderly's house, I would laugh to myself. The special design of the tap only leave you with two scenarios: 1) you fill the pail with water 2) you make your back wet because you turned on the shower accidentally. Because the second scenario had occurred to me too frequently, I would instinctively move aside whenever I on the tap XD. After we were done with the chores, we sat down and ask if she remembered going to 新世界 last time. Her eyes lighted up at that topic=) She remembered she always went there to 看大戏 and shop for clothes. She said there were plenty of food stalls also, especially the yong tau foo stall which only charges 10 cents for 3 ingredients! She said in the past there were so many roadside stalls that she was able to shop from Kallang to Chinatown with her friends when they were not working. I really loved how enthusiastic she was when she was telling us all these=')

Next we visited Mdm C.M. AS usual we laughed first before talking. She looked more alert today as compared to the last time I saw her(yayyyyy!!!). But her memory is really failing. She tend to forget where she put her keys and had to search for it. I think she needs encouragement from us whenever this happens because she would to call herself "siao" when she couldn't remember where she left her keys. She taught us how to people-watch and was beaming with pride when we praised her about her cactus. When we asked her if she remembered about 新世界, she said she do! But forgot what she did over there. I am really thankful for Mdm C.M.
It must be scary to keep forgetting about things, to forget the people around you. But she never let all these
fears stop her from smiling. Her smile is still as infectious and cute. Thank Mdm C.M. For being so brave
and such an inspiration!

Sheng Xian

[10 May] One of my last few visits as an undergraduate..

Today, Chanel, Zihui and I went to find Mdm CSK and was warmly greeted by her “惠玉啊, 你来了啊~ (Huiyu, you are here~)” [ps: my name isn’t huiyu, but she associates me with local artiste Zoe Tay cos we have the same surname haha]. That familiar voice is one that I will never forget, and one of many things that kept me coming back on Saturdays for the last four years. :') Looking back, I recall how our seniors always warned us to be careful when tidying Mdm CSK’s house because she was very OCD about which cloth to use, which detergent to use, the layout of her furniture, etc. She hasn’t changed a bit these years. And instead of feeling afraid, I felt happy to be ‘scolded’ by her because it means she feels comfortable enough to tell us so. This is the charm of Mdm CSK haha. So, as usual, we did some cleaning of her windows, chairs and floor today. She also treated us to drinks and told us stories about how she got married off to JB and settled back in Singapore in 1991 after she got her Singapore I/C (which she proudly showed us). Another thing that’s awesome about Mdm CSK is that she lives up to the ‘活到老 学到老’ (lifelong learning) spirit. Even at her age, she still learns different languages like English and Chinese, and tries to improve her proficiency by speaking to us in these languages. She also volunteers regularly, helping other elderly with the buying of groceries or even going to old folks’ homes to perform. She’s really so ‘happening’ and active (speaking of which, she was preparing to go for a Sentosa trip after we left her house)!

 

Next, we went to visit Mr TSH. He was on his way for lunch when we arrived. So paiseh, cos he made a detour to invite us into his house. Mr TSH is another legendary character as he is a walking encyclopedia and historian. He never fails to enlighten us on worldwide politics and WWII experiences he had gone through. And so, we talked about local anti-Jap forces led by Lim Bo Seng, the merger and separation with Malaysia, NanJing massacre, Thai politics, etc. It was really enriching just listening to Mr TSH’s stories and insights on these topics, and his knowledge never fails to awe me.

Quoting Jeraldine, it is really great to be back after the short hiatus due to exams. Today is probably one of my last few visits as an undergraduate. :’( THES was the first RVP I joined, and I have never regretted my choice since. And I believe many of you will agree that while it may seem like a commitment to come back on Saturdays at first, it soon becomes a ‘habit’ and a part of your life to do so. The familiar sights and sounds become something that you really really look forward after each tiring week of school/work. :’) The bonds forged with our elderly through these four years as well as lessons learnt from them and our fellow volunteers are invaluable things I will treasure for life. It is really miraculous how we are able to share these bonds with our elderly, isn’t it? So, I’ll be back for more! Will you? ;)

Yinmin :)