An Amazing Lady

 

Nam Wha feeding the 23 dogs in her rented house.

 

Junox with her favourite toy which she treasures after the death of her two puppies.

 

Nam Wha's elderly mother who is unable to walk.

 

Nam Wha, getting ready on her bike, to deliver food to feed the strays
at the Christian Cemetery

On the last day of my visit in Penang, I decided to roam around on my own. Second brother Kee Seng dropped me off at my favourite market at Jelutong. This is the market where I used to help mother carry her heavy shopping basket. This is the market where our dog, Bobby would visit to get his usual gift of bone or pork skin from the butchers.

I decided to visit our old house in the village. As I arrived, I was surprised to hear loud barking and by golly, there were so many dogs. I saw a lady moving around the compound. I introduced myself, and she seemed somewhat happy and relieved that I was not some officer from the government department. She was even more thrilled when she realised I am a dog lover.

Nam Wha and her mother have been renting the house which she found suitable because of the huge compound. Sadly she told me that the house would be demolished soon, maybe in a year or two. My brother and his family had moved to a new condominium, while awaiting for the demolition.

Nam Wha introduced me to some of the dogs. She pointed out to one, Brownie which looked healthy. The dog's liveliness belied the ugly truth - he had been slashed on the head with an axe! Nam Wha rescued the dog and rushed him to the vet for his wound to be attended to. After carefully nursing the dog back to health, the four legged creature also gradually learnt to trust people. There were also some 5 cats kept in cages in the house.!

I saw another three legged dog and was told that the dog lost a leg in an accident.
Nam Wha introduced me to Junox, a mixed breed of shih-tzu and maltese. She found Junox weak and heavily pregnant. The kind lady brought Junox home. Junox gave birth to two puppies but she accidentally suffocated the puppies to death. To give comfort to the bitch, Nam Wha bought her a soft toy which became her favourite...perhaps a reminder of her lost puppies.

Nam Wha's mother was lying on her foldable bed and though at the age of 79, she could still remember me! She had lived in Jelutong Village before and spoke about papa and his great interest in music. As a dog lover, she too supported her daughter's work of caring for dogs and cats. Nam Wha shared with me that a snake had entered the house, and the dog's barking had alerted her to it. The snake was overwhelmed by the presence of the dogs and slithered away. How dangerous it could have been for Nam Wha's bedridden mother.

The dogs stopped their barking after they realised I was their owner's friend. Nam Wha proudly told me that at night, the dogs are very quiet. It was as if they understood that if they were to make too much noise, they would not be allowed to stay in the house. Amazing animal instinct!

Nam Wha told me that I was lucky to be able to come at the right time, for if it were later she would have gone to feed the strays and then proceed to work. She works as a part time seamstress in a factory manufacturing jeans and pants.

Nam Wha shared that some foreigners who had heard about her work came to visit her once, and one of them is giving her some financial support. However, she would need more financial support as her strays now total around 100. I told her I would share her story in my blog to help garner some support. If any reader is interested, the following details would be of relevance:-

Name: Yaw Nam Wha

I.C. No. 470205075302

Snail Mail: 240 Jalan Madrasah,
Penang 11600,
West Malaysia.

Mobile: +016-4239477

Bank Simpanan Nasional

Account No.: 07105-29-84833906-2

I love dogs but I can never do what Nam Wha does. Though 63, she looks ten years younger. I saw her lugging the rice and chicken she had cooked and fastening the food safely onto her motor bike. Nam Wha reminds me of the founder of Noah's Ark, Raymund Wee. Compassionate animal lovers like them are indeed admirable. The least I can do is to help in whatever little ways I can, such as writing about them in my blog. It is not possible for them to do it alone - they would need help from you and me. So let's play a little part. I will give Nam Wha some little financial support - money that I save by not taking the bus or money saved from not buying an unnecessary item. This will help to keep me on my toes and to resist temptation.

May God bless the works of Nam Wha and Raymund. May their love and compassion for these pitiful strays strike a chord in our hearts. It was Mahatma Gandhi who said, "The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated. I hold that, the more helpless a creature, the more entitled it is to protection by man from the cruelty of man".

Happiness is .....(26)

 

The comfortable seats in the bus.

Perhaps readers might beg to differ with my choice of transport whenever I visit my relatives in Penang. Some might even be puzzled as to why I prefer taking the bus and travelling for 10 hours through the night and early hours of the day when I could fly instead either by budget airlines or by Malaysian Airline System or the ever popular SIA.

Happiness to me is enjoying my trip home by bus with 16 seaters. The seats are so spacious and make me feel slimmer than I really am, as opposed to those smaller seats in the planes.! Somehow, the narrow seats and aisle in the planes make me feel somewhat gargantuan! I remember once I was in the MAS plane, and the Caucasian man seated behind me had such long legs that he literally pushed my backrest forward. I had to sit in a hunched position throughout the 105 minutes journey. !! As the plane was full and it was only a short journey, I did not want to make life difficult for the serving crew.

Although budget airlines are more economical, they are not very reliable. Sometimes the flights are delayed or postponed and passengers may or may not be informed on time. My best friend, Soh Wah, has a good point when she said she is worried about the maintenance of the budget planes. With so much cost cutting, will safety of the aircrafts be as good and trustworthy?

Thank God for short legs for I am able to snuggle quite comfortably in my seat. Once we pass through the Johore Immigration, I will start to watch the program on the screen in front of me. Often before the program is completed, I would have dozed off in deep slumber! Even when the bus stops for toilet or coffee breaks, I would continue sleeping till we reach our destination. I kill two birds with one stone, sleeping and travelling at the same time.

To enable me to sleep soundly, I would often try to have only four hours sleep the night before, so that I would be really exhausted and hence can sleep soundly throughout the journey. I would also fast ....no more food and drinks after 3p.m. on the day of travel. I would only sip a little water from my bottle. However, when I return to Singapore, I would have dinner with my relatives so as to make them happy. I am glad that the Malaysian government has improved the condition of the toilets now.

Of course we have heard of drivers who doze off while driving, hence jeopardizing the lives of their passengers. I would always pray before the start of the journey, asking God to protect the bus drivers and passengers. I am glad that the government is now looking into the operation of bus companies to ensure better training and working conditions for the drivers. Due to the low pay, some of the drivers try to work overtime so as to earn more and hence are more accident prone.

Of course, it will be just great to fly by SIA, but the amount I could save by travelling on the bus would enable me to buy lots of presents for my relatives and friends in Penang. Happiness is when I am able to give rather than receive.

Happiness is travelling alone with time to ponder and analyse. Happiness is just being quiet and basking in my own thoughts with peace and serenity. Happiness is being grateful that I can travel in a comfortable bus as compared to the jam-packed buses and trains we see in Nepal, India and other third world countries.

Penang Revisited

 

With cousin Nancy on my right, and sis-in-law Saw Kim on my left

 

The paper bag from Sunshine Department Store which says, "Our world is beautiful
without plastic bags".

 

Sunrise taken from the balcony of brother's condominium at Sungei Ara

 

My grandnephew Johnson with sister, Kai Wen and grandnieces Yap Zen and Yap Ning.

Now that I think of it, this would probably be my first visit to Penang during Christmas time. I usually go back to Penang during the Chinese New Year period and once, as a surprise visit for brother Kee Seng's birthday party on 22nd November.

I decided to spend Christmas this time as my niece, Tyng would be back from the States. As usual, everything turned out accordingly to plan, by God's grace and blessings. Sometimes we can plan and plan, and things go awry. Sometimes man proposes; God disposes. Upon arrival at Penang, I called up my beloved cousin, Nancy and was delighted to find out she would be free on that day. Hence, Nancy picked me and my sister-in-law, Saw Kim up and we went for lunch and some shopping. Nancy is a born joker; she is natural in her narration of anecdotes which sent me and Saw Kim rolling with laughter.

On the second day, another relative, James, took me out and we visited his mother-in-law, my beloved aunty. I felt somewhat sad that aunty has deteriorated in her mental capacity and is unable to recognise and remember things. Nevertheless, she is still alert, and would only nod her head when asked some questions. I brought along my violin and played some Christmas songs and Mandarin and Hokkien songs for her. My relative, James, is such a hospitable man. His home is like a hotel, offering accommodation to endless visitors from abroad. We name his home "James Loke Hotel". James is retired and both he and his wife help to babysit their grandaughter at their lovely condominium.

We had a lovely Christmas eve dinner ....not your usual turkey, but something down-to-earth as fried mee hoon cooked by my sister and law, and I fried some Penang Char Koay Teow which turned out to be a hit. I was flattered when my grand nephew, Johnson said, "Aunty Choo, I could eat ten plates of your Char Koay Teow!" Knowing how fastidious Penangnites are with their food, I was very encouraged indeed. Choo can cook after all!

We spent three days and two nights at Tanjong Bungah beach. My relatives all insisted on eating out at different restaurants nearby instead of at the hotel cafe. Penang is such a lovely island and is indeed a pretty and dainty pearl. I brought along my violin, and while my relatives were swimming at the pool or in the sea, I practised my violin. What a lovely feeling when I played at the balcony, enjoying the beautiful scenery of the sea at the same time.

On the last day, I decided to roam around town on my own so that I could pick up some gifts and souvenirs for friends. At the same time, I could have my favourite chendol dessert. I was surprised that the bus journey from Penang Road to Sungei Ara cost me MR2.70! I bought a bunch of bananas and to my surprise, it cost me MR5.00.

I guess no matter how often I have travelled round the world, Penang will always have a special place in my heart for it is my beloved hometown - full of good food and wonderful people.

Gan Cao