Touching Experience

One of my Senior Managers went to India to contribute to the community, while working with my firm, as part of a special program to strike a balance with corporate social responsibility.

I am very attracted by one part of her experience, which I would quote it as follow:-
"My day ends and I head home with my laptop and water bottle. We stopped at the traffic lights and two 10-year old street girls came on either side of the rickshaw. I waited for the pity and beg routine. The left girl cupped her palms and lifted it to her chin.

It was a profound moment. I’d made a stand not to contribute to street kids as it encourages them to remain at this instead of seeking employment or education. The green-eyed girl said ‘panni’ and pointed forward. Oh, she wanted water. I poured water into her palms which channeled to her mouth. She was dehydrated and clean water tasted good. Both friends smiled in appreciation. A pause, they didn’t ask for money.

Something made me look into their eyes. I saw serenity, sincerity and bliss. They were poor; they wore rags and were barefoot. What are they so happy about? I observed the scene around – same expressions.

I flashed back to friends around the world. I don’t see the same. We move around constantly planning for the future, mental to-dos and worrying if we’ve enough saved. Yet now amidst extreme poverty, I see people who are ‘in the moment’, smiling, just getting through today. We’ve made life so complex that ‘living in the moment’ is hardly experienced.

I’ll remember this forever. Let me live in the ‘now’."

This definitely gives us hope on human beings, on the softer side of people. We shouldn't prejudice when we see people begging around. I myself made the mistake once at Kelana Jaya LRT. I saw two young girls approached me, and I thought it would be like the typical people who beg for money at LRT. I said no to them, and later they approached another guy, and I found the guy bought two tickets for them to ride LRT. Apparently, they needed a ride on LRT, as they ran out of money. I really did badly on that, as I should have come forward to offer to do that.