Today, after dropping KK to school, we went to have lunch at the Bedok hawker center. We ordered 'ban mien' but when the food arrived, I couldn't bring myself to start eating it. The cause of my discomfort: disposable chopsticks. I opened mine and found one to be splintered. There was also some powdery stuff when I brushed it. Most importantly, I'm haunted by the email report about how unhygenic these disposable chopsticks can be. Recent reports about the safety of our food and utensils also added to my hesitance. Hubby couldn't find normal chopsticks at that stall, so we resorted to 'stealing' the chopsticks from another stall. I also skipped using the disposable plastic spoon when I see it change shape after being dipped into the piping hot soup. Sigh, maybe I will really start carrying my own chopsticks when we eat out next time. Since when has eating become so troublesome? Nowadays, we can never take things at face value.
Then just as I was about to start digging in, I glanced up and see a most ugly man. I think he has 'elephant' disease or something, that caused one side of the skin on his face to sag so long until almost his chest. He was sitting near the interchange, where streams of people walk past, begging with a plastic cup. I doubt his efforts would get him much income. How would people donate when they can't even bear to be near him for one more second?
Honestly, I couldn't eat well after that. Though I couldn't bear to look at him, I can't help glancing up now and then in between mouths of noodles to see if anyone dropped money for him. My heart is full of pity yet I also think this guy shouldn't be out spoiling people's appetite. He should be seeking treatment so that he can be employed in a proper job. With his current looks now, there's no way anyone will hire him. Hubby and I launched into this discussion about how come our hospitals are so eager to separate the Iranian twins and Nepalese twins and the irony that local folks like this guy are neglected? I wonder how many more people like him are hiding at home, resigned to their fate. Many of these people are low-income so what's the options for them if they want to go for surgery? Public donations perhaps? But is there a quicker way to solicit donations other than sitting at the bus interchange? I suggested maybe we should take a picture and send to Stomp. If the journalist publish his story, many kind-hearted Singaporeans will sympathise and send him donations. But we both don't have a camera device with us. Anyway, Hubby thinks we ought to seek this man's permission first. So in the end, we left it as that.
10 - who's really thankful to have a normal face
