Done Out of Instinct

Tan Cheng Kiat (Secondary 3, Vanda-4, 2022)

The majority of us are often unaware of the struggles that the people around us face that we end up neglecting what is right in front of us. Oftentimes, it is because we do not want to be too involved in situations that are not "our problem". However, this was not the case for one of our Secondary 3 students.

As this Secondary 3 student was making his way to school, he realised that he was going to be late. As he was hurriedly making his way to the bus stop, he witnessed a very perturbing and disconcerting scene a distance away.

The disturbing scene showed a burly man in his 30s pushing a 70-ish-looking elderly woman whilst continuously yelling at her the entire time. While on his way to assist the old woman, he was aghast at the sight of her being pushed off the pavement and almost getting knocked down by an oncoming taxi.

He quickly made his way to the fallen old lady and supported her back up. The taxi-driver also got out of his taxi to attend to the old auntie, to which he also called the police.

Unfortunately, the gruff man, who was later revealed to be the old woman's son, did not feel the least bit remorseful for his actions, as he continued to rant and rave at her, peppering his upsetting sentences with inappropriate language. In addition to the sight our young hero had to witness, he was also the recipient of the beefy man's wrath - having had to receive an earful for being nosy and a "kaypoh".

Despite all this, our young hero chose self-control over giving the buff man a reaction. Instead, he held the old lady's arm and moved her aside. Shortly after this, the police arrived and took statements from those who were present at the scene. Our young hero was also involved in this 50 minute process. This first step our young hero took to render aid and support to a stranger resulted in him being extremely late for school.

When asked if he had ever hesitated in responding to the situation, he firmly said no.

He shared that he would be very grieved if his mother was ever treated this way by others, to which, this episode sparked a lesson in him to appreciate and love his mother even more.

While she was helplessly alone and being shamed, a 15-year-old stepped forward to do what was instinctual - lend a helping hand.

Written by: Tan Szu Jui Celeste (Vanda-5, 2022)