On 30 July, two days before Ramadan, volunteers dropped by with new furniture and a red packet for Fatimah’s family so that she and her family could celebrate the festival. Upon receiving the gifts, Fatimah couldn’t help bursting into tears while she embraced the volunteers. (Photo by Chan Wai Ho)
Mdm Fatimah is 53 years old and when her husband passed away several years ago, she had to bring up their two children on her own. Her elder daughter, Fazilah, is 22 years old while the younger son is 19 and doing his national service.
19 years ago, Fatimah was diagnosed with hereditary diabetes. Her health deteriorated further seven years ago and she has been visiting the dialysis centre thrice a week ever since. The dialysis treatment was however too expensive for her and as she was too weak to work and her children were still schooling, she had to turn to social welfare for help.
From January 2006, through a referral by a National University Hospital (NUH) social worker, Tzu Chi Singapore started to subsidize her dialysis treatment. One year later, she was put on the National Kidney Foundation (NKF) subsidy scheme and Tzu Chi then started to take care of her travel expenses for the dialysis sessions.
In 2011, Fatimah told Tzu Chi volunteers that she had not been able to sleep well. She only managed to catch some sleep while undergoing dialysis. This was because the cane reclining chair that she used to sleep in had to be disposed of as it was old and torn. During the day, the mother would sit on the floor to take a rest, and at night, she would sleep on the floor. The old mattresses that belonged to her children had also been discarded so the children had to sleep on the floor too.
Upon learning their plight, the volunteers felt sorry for them. Sister Lian Meier recalled somewhat guiltily, “I noticed Fatimah look tired every time I visited her, but I failed to realize that she had been sleeping on the floor for two months.”
After the home visit, the volunteers quickly raised an ad-hoc request to Tzu Chi office for a subsidy to purchase a new bed for the family. As Fatimah is stout, her bed needs to be sturdy enough to support her weight. In addition, she has difficulty moving, so the bed needs to be the right height for her. The volunteers visited a few shops before they found a suitable and affordable bed.
On 30 July, two days before Ramadan, the volunteers sent a twin bed together with a mattress for the son and a reclining chair for Fatimah to rest in the living room. Fatimah couldn’t wait to sit on the bed as soon as it was assembled. She kept saying the new bed was so nice and so comfortable, and how moved she was.
Knowing that Hari Raya was around the corner, the volunteers presented a red packet of S$200 to the family for them to celebrate the festival. Holding the red packet in her hands, Fatimah was already bathed in tears when she embraced the volunteers. Sister Meier explained that the family was worried about not having money to celebrate Hari Raya, as her daughter would only get her salary after the festival.
The cash had come at the right time for Fatimah. Through their interaction with the family, the volunteers found that Fatimah and her children are very easily contented. They had only hoped for a new bed, so the red packet was a pleasant surprise for them.
Standing by the side of the bed, Fazilah cherished it so much as she caressed it softly, saying that she would keep the plastic wrapping intact. The 22-year-old had no complaints about her family’s condition; instead she appeared to be more mature and steady than her peers.
Fazilah graduated from the Institute of Technical Education (ITE) and had been working part time and sometimes on a contract basis. Three days ago, after being out of job for two months, Fazilah found a part time job with a small eatery which required her to work six hours daily. Working in a very cramped space with the heat of boiling oil (with the oil’s temperature higher than 300 degrees), she occasionally gets scalded when frying frozen food. The lass simply gritted her teeth and steeled herself to be the sole breadwinner of the family for otherwise the responsibility will fall upon her younger brother.
Fazilah will prepare a simple breakfast for her mother when she wakes up at 5 am every morning before leaving for work. When she returns, she will tidy and clean up the house.
With the coming of Hari Raya, the volunteers hoped that the new bed and red packet will bring Fatimah and her family good luck and the beginning of a new and better life.
On 19 November afternoon, the volunteers conducted their regular home visit to the family. At each visit, they saw the slow but steady changes in the family. First it was the newly painted walls of light purple, followed by the black furniture bought from the Salvation Army. Talking about the changes in her house, Fatimah shared that it was all due to her daughter’s efforts, who painted the walls bit by bit every day after work.
Couldn’t bear to see Fazilah working so hard after work, Fatimah would keep her daughter company while she painted the wall till the wee hours of the night.
Fatimah beamed with delight at the mention of her children. Within the hour that the volunteers spent with Fatimah, both children called to find out how she was doing.
“They would ask whether I have taken my meal or whether I have taken my medicine.”
Fatimah then mentioned that Fazilah had resigned from her previous job with the small eatery and found a new job as a stock taker. As her place of work is very far from home, she has to spend four hours on the road travelling to and fro. To save for her transportation, Fazilah skips lunch every day to save a few dollars. The orange coloured fried rice in the wok was the dinner that Fatimah had kept for her daughter. (To save on gas, the mother only cooks once a day.) Fatimah feels happy that her daughter is filial to her, though at the same time she feels sorry that she has to go through so much hardship.
The volunteers then handed the ez-link card that the Foundation give on a monthly basis to Fatimah and enquired about her health. She told them there was no big problem, except for a stubborn wound on her toe that refused to heal, and her daughter has to clean and dress it every three days. When asked why she didn’t get her wound treated at a clinic, she replied, “It costs $8 to clean the wound, and the bus fare is $2.20 for a round trip. All in all, it costs more than $10 for a visit to the clinic.” To a not well-to-do family, every cent counts.
Though leading an impoverished life and in poor health, and with both arms full of injection marks, Fatimah still feels grateful and contented as her children are independent and takes good care of her; and that she also receives long term care and subsistence allowance from Tzu Chi. She enjoys participating in the aid distribution activities of Tzu Chi where she saw friends of different races catch up with one another. Witnessing the changes in them, it helps her to change her own mentality too.
“I feel that I am blessed when I see others’ hardships.”
The mother says that when both her children have better income and the family is financially stable, she will reciprocate by contributing to Tzu Chi so as to “help Tzu Chi to help others”.
Fatimah sat happily on her new bed, sharing with the volunteers her joy and gratitude.(Photo by Ng Paik Eng)
Asked about her recent health conditions, Fatimah said she was generally fine except for a toe wound that refused to heal. (Photo by Ng Paik Eng)
In January 2006, through a referral from an NUH social worker, Tzu Chi started to subsidize Fatimah’s dialysis treatment. One year later, NKF took over to subsidize her dialysis treatment and Tzu Chi has been taking care of her travel expenses incurred to attend the dialysis sessions. (Photo by Ng Paik Eng)
The orange coloured fried rice is the dinner that Fatimah has prepared for her daughter. To save on gas, Fatimah only cooks once a day. (Photo by Ng Paik Eng)
Touched by Tzu Chi from which she receives the assistance, Fatimah indicates that she will reciprocate by contributing to Tzu Chi when the family is financially stable so as to help Tzu Chi to help others. (Photo by Ng Paik Eng)
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