Love Keeps Cheng Going

A GONG Xi Fatt Choi banner still hangs across the front door of the cheery yellow brick and wooden house in the backwaters of Balik Pulau, Penang, four months after the lunar new year.

The scene reflects Cheng Mah Kim’s optimistic approach to life, but it belies the 71-year-old’s heart-wrenching duty of caring for her three bedridden children.

Cheng and her husband Lee Teik Hun, 78, are too busy to take down the banner because they’re preoccupied with caring for Chuan Beng, Khai Loon and Siew Kee. It’s a 24-hour job but this mother is not one to feel sorry for herself.

At times, the elderly couple relies on the kindness of neighbours and those who know about their plight for assistance. But mostly, they do everything themselves, including cooking, bathing and feeding the children.

The house they have been living in for the past 10 years was the result of a charity drive organised by a Chinese vernacular daily, non-governmental organisations (NGO) and community leaders.

“I have no reason to complain,” Cheng says. “We get RM300 a month from the state welfare department and we have a roof over our heads.

“That itself is such a blessing. We are very grateful to all those who have helped.”

Despite her years and ailing health, Cheng starts her day at four every morning and usually turns in only after midnight.

“At my age, I can’t really sleep in anymore. I get up and prepare breakfast for the kids – they really love coffee.

“Then I give them each a sponge bath. We can’t carry them to the bathroom so this will have to do,” she adds.

Lee will then go to the nearby market on his motorcycle while Cheng cooks the rice at home.

“Teik Hun usually comes back with fish and I’ll just prepare a simple dish for lunch and dinner.

“The kids can be picky. Sometimes they only want to eat bread,” says Cheng, who was in a wheelchair when The Star visited her home recently. She had fallen down a few days earlier and was struggling to dress the children. Her legs were swollen.

Cheng suffers from high blood pressure, constant migraines and pain in both legs. Teik Hun is diabetic. The couple used to sell pasembur on a three-wheel cart when they lived in Jelutong years ago.

“I wish we could continue hawking but then who will take care of the kids?”

Chuan Beng is 43 and his brother Khai Loon is 34. Sister Siew Kee, 38, has a cheeky smile for visitors. But the three of them can barely speak.

“They all had high fever when they were young. The doctors told me they had suffered epileptic fits,” explains Cheng, who speaks Hokkien and a smattering of Bahasa Malaysia.

“I don’t really understand the medical reasons for their condition. I tried sending them to a day-care centre for special kids when they were young but stopped because they refused to go.”

The proud mother says her family makes do with what they have. Their one luxury is Astro because the children are “addicted” to watching TV.

“All this is God’s will. No point worrying about tomorrow. Until the day I die, I will care for my children. It’s not that I don’t want to send them to a nursing home but whenever I try to explain it to them, they will wail and refuse to eat. I don’t want them to die of hunger at an unfamiliar place,” Cheng says.

Her niece, Belinda Lee, adds that the couple has two other daughters who married and left home and are unable to care for their siblings and parents. A fourth daughter died of illness.

“What my uncle and aunt need most are volunteers who can come around to the house a few times a week to help with their children,” Lee says. “The problem is that my cousins are not used to having people around. But, eventually, they will need to move to a nursing home when their parents are gone.

“That is why we are praying that there are Non-Government Organizations that can help prepare them for the inevitable so when the time comes for them to go live in a nursing home, they will not be traumatized.”

Now you know how lucky are we? Yes, we are. ;)
There is nothing much to complain about, but to solve the problem is the most important thing to do.

Father's Day

It's Father's Day today. Are you celebrating with your father today?

Father, he is a very special person to me, not only because he is my father, but what he has sacrificed for my brother and me. 

I remembered when I was very young, around 5-6 years old, my family is very poor. My dad worked as a car sales man where my mum is a housewife. 

We used to gather at my grandma's house during weekend. In one of the weekends, my cousin's parents bought a new robot toy to him. The robot is just the latest cartoon shown on the TV that time. I did not know how much it costs during that time. He was very happy and play with it the entire day. My brother and I were so envy about it by watching him to play it. 

After we are looking at the robot for a couple of hours, my cousin invited us to play along. But we did not know the cousin's parents dislike what we are doing. They complained to our parents. My dad did not say anything, but immediately bring us to the supermarket to buy the new robot to us to play. So eventually we are playing the 2 robots in the same shelter. My brother and I were so happy because this is the first robot we owned. 

After that, I got to know from my mum that the robot is quite expensive. Since we know we are poor, my brother and I never requested our parents to buy any toy for us. Perhaps that's why I remembered this case the most in my mind. Of course, I also remembered he sacrificing a lot to my family and myself.

My dad is 65 year old this year. Due to a serious business failure in his early 50's, he still need to work 7 days a week for a living of my family although his remaining debts are cleared. I felt very sorry that I'm helpless, yet to success in career/wealth and unable to bring him any comfortable life right now. 

As I'm working in the neighbor country and I unable to celebrate father's day with him today, I've transmitted some money to my brother to arrange a celebration program for him. I hope he enjoys his day.

Happy father's day, dad.

Quick Way to Reduce Temperature in the Car?

Most of the times, you feel very warm when you get into your car which exposed under sun for long time in the afternoon. So what is the best way to cool it down in the shortest time?

One Japanese professional invented a method. Perhaps it's not an invention. It's just a method. You must watch...

Yes, it looks like an idiot. But, will you do it? I definitely won't.

Aggressive Attitude Ruled?

How important is it to possess an aggressive attitude?

I was working in a semi-government IT company and worked 5 days a week for 10 years. Even though I'm doing partial sales, I don't have sales quota to achieve and everything is slow and relax. The laziness and lack of aggressive attitude have been rooted in my mind and body firmly. 

After I lost my good job, I'm now working as a very challenging and stress position right now, a sales guy who has a marvelous quarterly sales quota to achieve and subordinates to manage. It's just too busy to cope with this job. Well, perhaps that's the reason my blog post is getting lesser recently. 

I know it is very difficult to overcome something firm for 10 years. Somehow when I see others who able to make it and be a better person, I also want to try it. But my favorite strategy is that, I always give up in the middle of the game. I keep thinking that I want to quit, as soon as possible. Apart from being lazy, lack of aggressive and discipline, I don't like challenge as well. I like to do simple things but in hope to get great return. 

At this point of time, I realized aggressive attitude and hardworking are very important, not only to me to make a living, but to everyone who is looking for success in their career.

Aggressive attitude is the motor to success. It’s not only think aggressively but also act aggressively. Every day you wake up, you would be aggressive, in terms of thinking and communication. It’s always within your heart, if you possess it.

So, are you a person who has aggressive attitude? Let's run a test.

1.       I watch at least 1 hour news daily.

2.      I read newspaper daily.

3.       I read weekly news magazine weekly.

4.      I'm having bad mood occasionally for the entire day.

5.      My job is very boring.

6.        I encountering bad temper every hour or few hours.

7.       I like to get along with pessimistic people and pity on them.

8.      If anything goes wrong, I always blame on others.

9.         If there is something wrong or in trouble, I will share with others.

10.        If I angry with someone, I try not to talk to him/her not less than 4 hours.

11.       I bring personal problem to office, and discuss with colleagues.

12.         I always make the worst assumption.

13.    My mood can be affected by bad weather.

Yes for less than 2: Your attitude is aggressive.

Yes for 3 to 6: Your attitude toward aggressive is soft.

Yes for more than 7: You are seriously lack of aggressive.

Well, I scored 6 with Yes, damn it.