The Pastor Opened Up a Farm, to Teach the Inmates to Plant the Produce So They Have a Viable Way to Make a Living After Their Release

A preacher, with the work of God, in helping to reform the inmates who are released, giving them a set of viable skills that they can make a living off, so they are less than likely, to return back to their former ways of life, a life of crimes, off of the Newspapers, translated…

The pastor from the Ming-Der Rehabilitation Center of Tainan Penitentiary System Hu was once a successful businessman, after his failed ventures in business, after he hit her all-time low in he life, she went into the seminary school, and started spreading the gospels to the inmates in prison, saw a lot of how the drug addicts failed in getting cleaned up, she’d set up the “Yong-Hsin Home Happy Farms”, to help the reformed inmates have a viable way to make a living, he’d stayed at the far all day long with the released inmates, from the beginning of the program, there’d only been one individual and now there’s, ten, the Yong-Hsin Home Happy Farms became a halfway house for the released drug addicts, where they get to set up their own means to make a living for the rest of their lives.

Hu had the ups and downs in working in business, due to owing too much in debts in his business ventures, he’d lost support from his own families, became severely depressed, originally wanted to commit suicide to end his own life, he was, saved, and, made a miraculous complete recovery, he’d believed, that God saved him for a reason, and gained a whole new lease on life, in his family’s encouragement, he went into seminary school, and started spreading the gospels in prison regularly.

the photo of the man, setting up a halfway house for the released prisoners, off of UDN.com

He’d preached to the Ming-Der Rehabilitation Center of Tainan for over a year, and stayed with the addicts, and understood why many of the cases why they’d failed, primarily due to how after the inmates releases, they’d wanted to return back to the society, but lacked the environment that served as a middle ground.

He’d selected a farm as a halfway house for the reformed, released convicts, and stayed with these released inmates twenty-four seven at his farm.  He said, that the halfway house acts to help an unsteady sapling, with the four sticks on four sides, the ropes, steadying the young sapling, to have it set its roots down in the stable environment, then, it can grow on its own to become, stronger.

Hu told, that the primary produces of the farm were mangoes, vegetables, and all of the released inmates at the beginning told him that they couldn’t plant it, and now, they’re, sweating along, growing the foods that they’re consuming, he bore witness to how the reformed inmates are, getting their lives back on the right tracks step by step.

Hu Supervised the Released Inmates to Get Certified.

It was three years ago when Hu started up the Yong-Hsin Home Happy Farms, recently, he’d set up the “Take Me Home Workshop” in Yongkang, Tainan, selling the handmade buns with feelings, the traditional Chinese buns, and dumplings made by the inmates who’d been released from prison, helping those addicts who are trying to stay clean to have a stable sources of income, and the skills, to start off a business of their own.

“Guo”, who’d been successful in getting cleaned, had perfect skills in making the dumplings, he’d only worked odds and ends from before, thought that he couldn’t be successful, after a little over a year’s training and learning, he’d become, a certified professional.

Another released inmate, Yang already, passed his level C certification in baking, at first he’d told, “certification for me?  Not possible!”, Hu asked the instructors to train him in his baking skills, and, forced him to take the skills certifications exams, “the pressure had been, enormous, but, in his pushing me, I actually, passed, I’m, encouraged by the man completely.”

And so, this is the wonderful thing this man is doing, for the released inmates, because they lacked the skills, and had been in prison for, many years, they are normally, detached from the rest of the outside world, and, this workshop served as a halfway place, a transitional place for these reformed, released inmates to acquire a skill that they can live off, to help them better support themselves, so there would be less of a chance, they’re to, return back to their former lives of crimes.

The Most Beautiful Encounter on that Trip

The kindness of these strangers, of how they’re, all willing, to do everything they could, to help this woman, find back her misplaced cell phone that she’d left in a restroom, translated…

Upon thumbing across “Traveling is Meeting up with Something Interesting”, I’d recalled of the heartwarming story of the trip my daughter and I took a few years back.  That was a group tour to the middle strips, a one-day trip, we’d come to the Taichung Opera House as scheduled.  The opera house was beautiful, left us all in awe, but we were only allowed half an hour there, then, we’re to, rush to another location for lunch.  After the tour, as we settled ourselves in the tour bus, my daughter who sat in the back, came towards me, in a trembling voice, she’d told me, “mom, I’d left my cell phone on the second floor restrooms of the opera house.”, then, rushed off the tour bus, waited until I’d gotten it, I’d apologized to the tour guide, as well as the rest of the tour group, asked them to wait, so we can find the cell phone that my daughter had left by accident.

My daughter and I rushed toward the second-floor restrooms, but, the cell phone she’d placed on the counter was, already, gone.  She’d started crying, in a, close-to-howling voice, “gone!  Gone!  It’s, gone!  Someone took it!”, that was from her hard work in part-timing, saving up the money for, watching her in her sorrows, I’d not wanted to, blame her for her, carelessness, seeing how her heart was breaking, mine was too.  Neither one of us was giving up, so we’d, gone through every stall to look again, and then, we’d gone to the counter, to report that she’d, left her cell phone, hoping that someone had picked it up, and return it back to us.

On the bus, my daughter kept crying, and everybody came to console with her, and given her a ton of advices, for instance, go to the police station to report her cellphone missing, to the telecommunications company, to stop the use, and there were others on the bus who’d told us, to have faith, that the cell phone my daughter lost, will be returned back to her soon, that we shouldn’t, fret over it too hard.  At lunch, my daughter naturally, lost, all her appetite, and, those who sat at the table all consoled with her, and put the foods into her bowl and plate for her, but, the torus of the rest of that afternoon, we were both, troubled, and, just, couldn’t enjoy it.

There were, a total of eight tour buses of the tour we were on, there was a woman who saw how heartbroken my daughter was, she’d gone, bus-by-bus, talked to the tour leaders on the various buses, the drivers, to help see if they can track my daughter’s phone back to her.  As we are, on the ride on the way back home, the guide of our bus picked up the mic, and, delivered the good news: my daughter’s phone was, discovered!  It was someone from another tour bus who’d, found it.  Then suddenly, everybody on our bus started, applauding, my mother who’s sitting on the back patted her chest, kept saying, “So happy!  I’m so very, happy!  Seeing how the young one cried, my heart was wrenching!”, ahhhhhhhh, so, my daughter’s upset for misplacing her cell phone had, impacted everybody’s else’s emotions on the bus too.

There was that unspoken gratitude toward everybody, both my daughter and I started getting red in the eyes, what we’re moved by, wasn’t how the lost cell phone had been found, but also, of how these kind people we’d met, helped comforted her too, that was, the best encounter of this trip.  While, that woman who’d, led the tour of our particular bus, who’d gone bus by bus, to ask if someone from the other buses had picked up my daughter’s lost phone, lives in an alley adjacent to my home, and we’d become, best of friends too.

And so, this, is the kindness from strangers whom you just met on a tour, and, because you are sharing the same tours, that’s why, it’d, made you all connected, to the young woman who’d lost her cell phone, and the rest of the group started, actively asking around, and found the woman’s misplaced phone for her, this also showed, how help can come from strangers whom you only met.

At the End of the Year, Dressing Up as Santa, to Deliver the Warmth to Those in Need

‘Tis the season, or, is it???  Passing the joys, the meanings of giving back to the community, this time of year, on how the other half, lives, off of the Front Page Sections, translated…

My friend messaged, “Is someone enjoying the rice balls with you on Winter Solstice?”, I didn’t know how to respond.  It seemed that my friend thought, that being single is very awful; although I’m alone on my own, I have a property, and am getting by just fine, but to the homeless, every day is the same, winter solstice doesn’t mean gathering around with family, but under the attacks of the cold weathers.  What most of us expects, Christmas, New Year’s Eves…………for the homeless populations, it’s only, more trials in their lives, and, every day can be, an end for them.

The bus parked by the stop of Ximenting, as I got off, I’d, bumped into a middle age man, with that sign and a red balloon, as a walking ad for property for sale, like Santa, giving out the gifts, he’d, passed a flyer to the passersby, I took a flyer, it had, “two bedrooms for 11.88 million at Ximenting…………”, I can’t afford that, in TWO lifetimes.  Seeing how the man who was passing out the flyers, with the mattress, the clothing, the umbrella, and his belongings in those, plastic bags, which disclosed of his homeless status, being homeless as he, he was still, helping others, find a home, it’d, made me feel, very, deeply.

A lot of those on the lower end of the socioeconomic statuses started, parasiting onto the construction companies, and, made their livings off of passing out the flyers, holding up those, signs on the streets.  I’d once, worked as a security guard at a mansion’s prebuilding site, without the shelters from the rain, nor the wind, and I can only, dodge by the corners, to have my meals, and, what was harder for me to handle were, the changes in the weather conditions of Taipei………and so, I can, understand, the hardships, the trials of life, of these individuals who are, holding up those ad signs for their, livelihoods.

The renters from opposite where I live passed, and the property was remodeled, into, many smaller, suites by the landlord, with the cost of $8,000N.T. per month, I thought, how expensive, and yet, the spaces got rented out, one by one.  The costs of everything is on the rise, what can the renters, do?  Or maybe, for those who have steady work, they’d, gritted their teeth, and bore with it!  But, for those who only had odds and ends, or are, unemployed, they can only, live on, the streets.

the donated goods, at a charity for the holidays…photo from online

From before, the homeless would gather around Longshan Temple, Taipei Main Station, and now, there are, many of the homeless population who’d, squatted the sidewalks of, Sinchuang too, on the nights where the cold fronts came, I would be out and about, with the clothing, the blankets, the thin quilts, walked around my neighborhood, and, given them out randomly.  Two days ago, I’d visited Banciao, found the homeless person asleep outside the doll arcades, with nothing more than a thin cover on him, not long after he lay down, he’d, gotten back up again, and returned, with a bottle in his hand.  From before, I’d believed, that alcoholism is a very bad habit for the homeless!  But, as I stood where they sleep, I’d understood, how they’d, needed to fight off their alcoholism, and also, the coldness that won’t, be chased away, and rather than scolding them for being drunks, it would be more meaningful, to ask them if they needed a sleeping bag, the warm packs.

MERS-CoV had been in the world for two whole years now, and, it’d, changed a lot for us: the hikes of costs in daily living needs, more unemployment, and the rents, the housing prices also, skyrocketed as well now, which made the homeless population grow even bigger.  As the holidays near, a lot of us are shopping, eating out, finding that hotel, so we can, watch the fireworks on New Year’s Eve, for the homeless: there’s only the differentiations of the cold or the warmer weathers, and no holiday seasons.

In the times of chaos, some had lost their homes, some are, stacking up the total of properties they owned.  As we are warm, on the inside, enjoying our holiday seasons, maybe, we can, play Santa too, to share the warmth we have, to others who are in need, all around us.

And so, this, is how the other half, lives, they don’t live well at all, without warm clothes on their backs, no food for their stomachs, and, comparing to how many of us, are warm inside our homes, with food, dressed warmly, it’s, such, a huge, contrast, and it makes us, want to, go out, and help out those who are, in need, doesn’t it???

Cheng Who’s Learning to Control His Impulses

The techniques of behavior modification, positive reinforcement, and using the rewards system, it’d worked, in helping this young man to get rid of the unacceptable behaviors, translated…

Through Observations & Beating Around the Bushes, Xiang-Yun Chien Realized, that Reason Why Cheng Did What He Was Doing May Have to Do with His Mother’s Passing, and How He Lacked that Sense of, Security; Cheng was Very Anxious, Bitten All Ten of His Finger Nails to Out-of-Shape……………

Switching Tracks, All Because She Enjoyed Teaching

Everybody who knew the Bo-Ai Development Center of the First Social Welfare Foundation knew that the handmade soaps are a popular item, for the household chores, the essential oil soaps, the transparent soaps, are all good for gift-giving and self-use.  While, the woman who’d led these developmentally delayed youths to make the soaps, is the special eds instructor who’d worked for more than two decades at the Bo-Ai Foundation, Ms. Chien.

Chien majored in visual broadcasting, after she graduated, she’d worked in the related industries, but slowly, found that she was really interested in a career in teaching, so she’d, switched tracks, and started working as an afterschool program instructor.  Later, she’d gone up north to a church sponsored mix-aged development center to work as an early childhood educator, this was the very first encounter she’d ever had with children with Downs’s Syndrome, and she took to them very quickly.  With her getting more and more involved in early childhood education, she’d started wanted to improve her own skillsets, to provide more assistance to the parents and the children.

After hearing of the First Social Welfare’s Special Eds Specialists, Chien in an introduction of a friend, started at the Bo-Ai Development Center, at first, she worked as an educator of an early intervention program, later, she’d started coaching the students who are working with a skillset; as she got the tasks of making the handmade soaps, Chien went around, to learn the skills to make the handmade soaps, and used her visual broadcasting major knowledge on the handmade soaps, with her design, the handmade soaps made by Bo-Ai all had the visually appeasing looks.

But, for Chien, other than taking the students to make the handmade soaps, she’d wanted more to help them live on happy and healthy.  She’d used her heart of caring, concern, tolerance, and warmth to treat all of her pupils, hoping, that with her help, they will, improve their qualities of living standards.

Take Cheng in her class for instance, as he’d started at the center, he was easily worked up, whenever things didn’t go his ways, he’d started, screaming, to express his upset, and he’d also, done things that aren’t, allowed for the classes: taking the fees the class collected for the cleaning up, stashing the money inside the spaces between the trash can and the trash bags in the restrooms, or inside his own shoes, so nobody can find them.

early intervention programs like this is, absolutely, needed! Photo from online

Through observing him, and beating around the bushes with him, Chien found, that reason why Cheng was misbehaving, may have to do with how his mother died, and how he’d lacked that sense of secure attachment; Cheng was too anxious, bitten down all ten of his fingernails, and, as Chien got closer to him, he’d hug his head tight, and dodged her, like he was, a fearful animal.

To lower Cheng’s sense of alarm, she’d first, accepted, and accompanied him, slowly, build up their, relationship.  Later, Chien started using the “positive reinforcement” techniques with Cheng, every time he’d done something well, she’d immediately, praised him, “Wow, you’re so amazing!  You helped me so much!”, and, as she left the class to go to a meeting, she’d asked Cheng to take care of her belongings, to help him establish that sense of responsibilities that he needed to have, and built up his confidence level, as well as help him feel more secure.  And because of all of her praises, and affirmations of a job well done by her, Cheng became more, and more, stabilized.

Using the Right Means, to Help the Individuals Have a Good Life on Their Own

And yet, Cheng still had a behavior that gives everybody a huge, headache—taking without asking.  Normally, we all know, not to take things that don’t belong to us, even if we want to use the items, we must get consent from the owners of the objects, but, for some of the mentally decapacitated individuals, differentiating between what’s yours and what’s mine, is next to impossible, and, wanting it, so I go and take it is, matter-of-fact to them, even as they’d learned, that this behavior is improper, when they see things that they wanted, it would still be hard, for them to control their, impulses.

In the behavior modifications, there’s an important technique called “environmental control”.  Toward the impulses that Cheng has of taking things without asking permissions, Chien would do her best, to put away everything that may tempt him to take away, to reduce the chances of him taking things without asking, and surely, it’d, made his behaviors improved.  But, every now and then, Chien would left the items out on the tables, to test Cheng, and most of times, he would pass, but, there were, a couple of times he still,, couldn’t, control himself, and so, the scissors would be gone.  And, although she knew, that it was Cheng who took the scissors, but knowing, that it would anger him if she confronted him for it, so, Chien would ask all the students, “what do we do, when the scissors have, disappeared?  We can’t do what we need to do”.  After Cheng heard, he’d told her, “I have some, I’ll bring them tomorrow.”  And the following day, he brought back the scissors, with Chien’s name on it back.  Through small tiny inquiry, Chien knew, that she’d, gotten through to Cheng a little more then!

And, even though all the techniques employed with Cheng all worked so far, Chien still wanted to help him better his life more, by helping him to become more connected to and with, others.  She’d used the positive reinforcement techniques of the “Stickers system”, for instance, if Cheng was able to not get mad, not hit, not take without asking, he could get the points for good behavior for that day, and, as he’d accumulated enough points, he get to trade the points in, for some prizes he wanted from Chien.  All these rewards became Cheng’s goals, and naturally, it’d become, a huge motivation for him to control all his, bad behaviors.

Even though, there are still more problems that he needed to tackle, but Cheng is well on that path to being able to have more impulse control now, and, it’d made us all, who work in the Bo-Ai Center, to see that he will be able to, live on his own, one day in the future.

And so, this place not only gave these special needs students the life skills training, it also teaches them how to adapt to the outside world, so that one day, they may be able to, live in the world outside, and, what this woman did for this young man is, helping him get rid of his unacceptable behaviors using the techniques of positive reinforcement, and the young man trusts his instructor enough, to follow her words too.

Don’t Consider it a Donation, But Sharing the Joys & Blessings of Sorts

On lending that helping hand to someone else who’s in need, offering the assistance to another, the acts of, kindness, translated…

My daughter came to me, and inquired, if she could, give her old school uniform to the next generation of new enrollees of her high school.  Turns out, the school counselor received the call from a parent of a first year student, who’d asked about if there are the uniforms available from the already graduated class to her young, and so, the teacher asked the students who are taller in stature, and sent the request out to the groups, to see if someone would, respond back, and, my daughter fitted to the requirements.

And so, we’d, cleaned up the winter, the summer uniforms, the belt, the tie, the backpack too, plus a handwritten card by my daughter, the lunch bag I’d sewn, with the fullest blessing, sent it out.

I don’t like using the words of donation to educate my young, so we’d always “shared” and “given the blessings away to others.”  My daughter carried this belief from when she was young, in her first year of middle school, she saw how I lost all my hair to chemo for breast cancer, started growing her hair for three whole years, then, cut it all off, to donate to those who needed, and to this day, she’d carried out her act of kindness.  As her classmates forgot the money for lunch, she’d shared with her classmates the lunches her grandmother made for her; the Vietnamese mom of a classmate was out working away from home, and she’d taken that classmate home, for a short stay with us.

teaching her young, the values of, giving to others…photo from online

My daughter being so kind and generous, it’s due to her maternal grandmother’s, influences, my mother loved sharing her cooking skills, those vegetable vendors, butchers, those neighbors opposite of her home, the security guard downstairs, the man in charge of the working of her community, the cleaning lady, the elderly woman who lives in the same building as she, all had the homemade foods she’d made…and, the foods she’d shared with others, contained, my mother’s, joys from sharing them, and so, we’d often received the free vegetables, pork livers, bubble teas, etc., etc., etc., as well as the gratitude from all around.

I recalled a coworker of mine, because his family of origin wasn’t functional enough, he’d, protected himself too much, even as the company started a donation for those in need, he’d, turned down the assistance.  My other coworkers complained about him, but I believe, that giving or helping isn’t that important in name, the regret that my coworker lives with, is that he’d not known how to “share”, because he was unaware, that he has the power, to bring about some tiny blessing to someone else that he comes across.

And so, this is on the benefits of giving to others, it makes us feel good, that we can, help someone in need out, and, there are, a lot of people in this world who are in need of assistance (not just the monetary sort), if we only look closely enough, and find these individuals who are in need of assistance, and offer a helping hand to them, it can lighten up their loads, and it’d made us feel, that we’d, contributed to making this world a better place too.

The Balloons of, Goodwill

Noting and knowing what you wrote, that got printed, touched a reader’s heart, that was, enough for you, as a writer!  Translated…

As a person who works with words, I’d been writing, for decades to date, and, I’d been, submitting my articles to the papers for over a quarter of a century to date.  Like the sediments accumulated in the riverbanks, left behind, the pages of my, drafting papers too, and I’d recalled what a writer once said to me, she didn’t know where her readers are.

It’s also these couple of years, I’d met some new friends on FB, they’d read my book, I can see what they looked like too, knew the goings on of their lives, but, through the responses forwarded to me from the papers by my readers, there were, only, two.  (both were sent to me by the editor of the Family subsection)  One was an email, the other, a handwritten letter, with the postage stamps on the envelope, passing through the back counters of a post office, separated, along with the mail carrier’s sweat, and finally, arrived, at the editor’s office.

What was odd was, included, was a pack of black beans, and Mexican primrose-willow, for my cats.  The woman was Ms. Liu, at a time in her life, she’d read my articles which I’d written on my cats, knew that my cats started urinating blood out, recalled how her own old cat once had kidney disease too, and from someone else, she learned that drinking the water from black beans and Mexican primrose-willow can help that it could heal, and it actually, did, for her cat, and ever since, she’d, tried helping the cat owners she’d come across with such a problem.

In her letter, not only did she introduced the origins, the sources of the herbs, and described in close detail how the items should be cooked, how to keep it, how to feed it to my cat.  The words were so genuine, as I read, I saw her heart of, compassion, leapt onto the pages, alive, and warm.

But unfortunate, I was living in the U.S. then, and got the article printed out on the papers after my cat had died, and so, I’d, not made used of that pack of remedies.  The editor of the subsection of the papers sent a photo of that package of medication to me, asked me how I wanted to reply back?  I’d thought for a night, saw that there was a phone number listed, I’d decided to call to say thanks, and, if the individual refused to take my call for any reason, then, I can only, write my thank-you note to the editor of the paper’s subsection, and have him pass it along.

like, this???

photo from online

Ring~~~!, the following day, I’d gotten the phone going, then, about to talk to a strange reader, I’d felt, a bit, nervous.  The call was, picked up, “hello!”, it was a woman, with a full-volume of voice, I’d quickly stated my name, and told her why I’d called, and, worried she might thought that I was a scam artist.  And immediately, she’d, believed me, and, I’d, asked her permissions to allow the editor to give the remedies to someone else in need, which she’d, gladly, agreed.  An overseas call, a short conversation, and yet, the balloons of goodwill, started, soaring high, underneath, that sunny sky then.

This time, I’d known since I was younger, that I was going to, be a person who makes a living off of my words, and finally, I’d, become, just that too.  with the blood of a word cooker, word lover inside of my veins.  And although, I’d become stagnant, and caught dead, in the solitude of the literary, but quickly enough I’d discovered, that so long as I can still breathe, my feelings are still, flowing, the words shall, never die in me.  As for the readers, I’d come to believe, that the readers are, quiet, and, maybe, they’re, outside of the realms of the kudos I’d received.  Just as I’m also, a silent, unknown reader, to another’s, work too.

The internet is a brand new world within the world, a poem, an essay, a novel, met and mingled in the vast oceans of various medium, sinking, floating, drowning, dying, or, stand out among the rest.  Whether or not I’m noted, I know, that the only thing staying with me, would be, the words.

Then, I shall, keep on, writing then.  Yeah, the final line of my favorite novel stated it that way: writing, the journey, continues on.

And so, this is through the interactions with your readers, and knowing, how what you wrote gained a response, from that, certain someone else, you KNOW that your writings had, had an affect in someone else’s life, made her/him, response, and it didn’t matter if you’re an acclaimed author, with the books published or not, you’d, become, fulfilled, knowing, that what you wrote had, had an effect, on someone else’s, life.

With Tar Covering Up His Shoes, Huang Built the Bridges, Paved the Roads, for Thirty Years

Here’s a man, who’d, given everything he’s got, to better the lives of those in his, hometown, off of the Newspapers, translated…

Every morn, as the skies just turned white, Huang put on his work boots, and readied for work, headed out, this pair of tar-covered, heavier as the days went by pair of work boots of his, had followed him, as he’d, paved many a bridge, filled up, a ton of potholes on the roads, and, he wouldn’t dispose of them, until, they’re, opened up at the front.  As soon as he left his home, the Jia-Yi Goodwill Group’s road fixing crew is already, speeding close, the workers greeted each other good morning, Huang got on, and started the daily routines of fixing up the roads he’d begun some thirty odd years back.

The seventy-eight year-old man, Huang worked as a volunteer paver of local roads, builder of bridges, from before, because his older sister lived close to the office of the goodwill group, she’d gotten involved in volunteering first, and, she saw that he was leisurely on the weekends, she’d pulled him along, for him to exercise his muscles and bones, to help building the bridges, and, he’d become, “stuck” in this calling once he’d, started scraping the sands together, moving the concretes a day at a time, he’d laughed and said, “I can’t go back now!” of his volunteer work.

the man…photo courtesy of UDN.com

He’d told, that at the start of his volunteer career, he was still working at a public office, and he’d started, moving the items, digging for the foundations, mixing the concrete, although he felt tired in his body, but he was, more, fulfilled then, and since, he’d gone to help build the bridges every single week.

He stated, that over a decade ago after he’d retired, there are more time then, for him, to help pave the roads, later he’d, bought a professional tar truck that helps pour down the tar on the roads, more sturdy after the roads were, paved.

with his shoes covered in tar…photo from UDN.com

“The foreman, Huang was always first!”, the C.E.O. of his group, Goodwill Chiayi, Kuo told, that every time Huang helped with building of the bridges, to patch up the roads, he’d always stood first in line, worked the hardest job, his face was often covered in dusts, ashes, with that heavy layer of tar covering up his work boots, and others around him reminded him that he should get a brand new pair, he’d smiled and said, “the boots now withstands high heat, easier for me to work in!”

And so, this is how you can become, generative (in generativity vs. stagnation???) after you retired, find that something you can pour your hearts and soul into, and just do it, like this man, who saw a need, and, provided it.

The Free Meal Programs in Zhonghe by a Shop Kept Providing the Meals for Those Who Needed, and Finally Gained the Monetary Supports it Needed to Carry on the Goodwill

Because the owner saw a need, and just, kept on, providing it, to the locals in his area, and his kindness is, dearly, noted here, off of the Newspapers, translated…

The “A-Xing Stewed Meats” in Zhonghe, Hsinbei City, for twelve years, provided 200 free meals to those who need, and there were those who received the free meals who’d started doing the dishes for the shop voluntarily to pay back, since the outbreaks hit hard in May, the shop didn’t make as much, and still managed to provide for a hundred free lunches to those in need per day, as a local charitable foundation learned of this, they’d raised funds and donated $38,000N.T. to help the shop keep going, to offer those who were hit hard economically to keep their stomachs, full.Xing Stewed Meats is a mildly famed shop locally, since 2009, the owner started providing the free meals, and for many years, he’d helped many families.  But since the outbreaks in May, the shop was hit really hard, and could no longer provide as many free meals to those in need anymore, and this greatly, impacted the lives of those who are in desperate need.  The Futien Foundation C.E.O., Huang invited the members of the foundation, to raise the funds, and received a total of $38,000N.T.s, and recently, he’d gone on behalf of his foundation, with the man in charge of the local borough, Lai, to donate to the shop.

Ms. Chang in Hsintien told, that her family wasn’t doing well, there are three members of her families who all suffered strokes, and there’s a huge sum in medical charges she had to worry about, she’d gone to the shop to receive two serving of the free meals offered by the shop, and the owner had been more than kind, it’d made her too grateful, and, whenever she’d found the time, she’d gone to the shop to help do the dishes voluntarily, and hoped that when she is more able, she could be like the owner of the shop, give back to the community as well.

people lining up to get their serving of free lunch provided by this local shop…photo courtesy of UDN.com

The owner of A-Xing Stewed Meats, Chen told, that he had been hit hard from before, that he didn’t have his meals regularly then, and can understand the trials of life, and back then, he’d made a vow, that when he is able to, he will, give back to the society in his own way.

Lai stated, that the city of Hsinbei hoped to start up this cycle of love and continue it, setting up the “Better Days Compassion Free Meals Platform”, inviting the local owners of food shops to come onboard their program, and currently, there are already, twenty restaurants that’s, signed up.

And so, this is still how a thought of kindness, seeing someone in need, and deciding to offer the assistance, can start a cycle of kindness, and those who were helped, are also, returning the kindness shown to them, by this shop that’s, started up this, cycle of help, of kindness, and hopefully, these acts of kindness will, keep on, rolling on.

Two Cabdrivers

One younger, one, middle aged, the younger was kinder, more gentle toward this woman and the needs of her husband, but not the older, more experienced driver, because, perhaps, the older driver lost his passion for work, while the younger driver felt that he was offering help to someone in need, and that’s the attitude differences, to how the two drivers perceived the needs of this woman’s husband, translated…

As my husband became immobilized, these past few years, when we went out, we took the cabs.  Awhile ago, he was due back at the hospital for his check up, as we’d just come out of our home, stood out to flag down a cab, the cab came from the other side of the streets for us.

As the driver opened up the door, I’d, tilted my head to him, stated, “I’m sorry, can you open your trunk, so I can put the wheelchair in.”  the driver was stumped for a bit, then, opened up his trunk, I’d helped my husband settle in first, then, moved his wheelchair to the trunk, but because of the height, and how I didn’t have enough muscle, I couldn’t, lift his wheelchair in, and it took me two, three minutes to finally store it in.  As I got in the cab, the driver had a soured face, and complained, “how slow!”, other than apologizing, there’s, nothing I can, say, after, time to them is, money.

Yesterday morning, we needed to go out again, and with the previous experience, I thought, as the cab stopped, I should inquire the driver if he’d mind taking someone in a wheelchair first.  And yet, as the cab stopped for us, not only did the front driver’s side door opened, so had the trunk too.  That young driver in a gray workout suit, with a baseball cap came out of his driver side, walked to beside us, gave my husband a hand, said, “Grandpa, no need to rush, just take your time!” as my husband settled into the seat, he’d, bent over, lifted up the wheelchair, and stashed it for us in his trunk, very agile, the driver had been.

As we settled into his cab, I’d thanked the driver for his help, he’d squinted his eyes toward me, said, “I work in the service industry, it’s what I’m supposed to do, no need to thank me.  I’m more than blessed, to give grandpa a lift, everyone was young once, but, not all get to their elderly years, I’d always feel especially blessed when elderly flagged me down.”

Hearing the young driver’s words, other than being grateful toward him, I’d felt, warmed up, due to this, experience of wonderful ride.

And so, here, we have, two contrasting attitudes, from two separate drivers, the first was older, he’d been working too long, perhaps, already, lost his passion for what he does for a living, while, the second driver was still a young lad, and, perhaps, his heart of offering help is what made the difference in the attitude to which he perceived this woman and her husband’s needs.

The Compassionate Meals at the Dongmen Night Markets of Yilan, Offered Help to Those in Need During the Outbreaks

Kindness shown, to those in need, by this, group of, business owners in a local night market, who’d, banded together, to provide the assistance to those in need during this trying time of MERS-CoV outbreak, off of the Newspapers, translated…

It’s been, days since the alerts were, downgraded to level two, the locals in Yilan had been, passing around the kindness.  The not-for-profit organization, the Lucky Families had been giving back in the program of, “I can handle it, Allow Me to Help You” meal programs.  There’d been more than ten night market food stands that are, actively, involved to date.  Providing for the families that are in trouble, breakfasts, lunches, and suppers, free of charge to the families in need.  The members of the Lucky Families program, the head of tourist development of Yilan Night Markets, Wang stated, that hopefully, through the platform set up by the night markets, it can, help more of those who are in dire need.

“There are those who are, having it, harder than we are having it, helping one another out, giving all that we can to each other”, Ms. Wang, the owner of a wrap stand stated, she’d once helped an elderly who works at making the handicrafts, the elderly made no more than $10,000N.T. by the month, couldn’t even afford her own $7,000N.T. rent, her family of four is tried, she’d recalled how she’d given to the elderly and her families, and it’d, made her feel, blessed.

the man, making the food to give to the families in need, free to them! Photo courtesy of UDN.com

The owner of a fast food shop, Chuang also told, “being able to help, it’s okay, that I make, a little, less money!”, he’d told, that a long-time customer and his families are living in a small suite, his wife isn’t well, nor was his daughter, this time, the outbreak came, it’d, caused the man to lose his job, he and his family is on the verge of not making it, and he’d, reported to the foundation that this family is in dire need of assistance, and the foundation helped the family by giving them some emergency cash to help them through.

There are, many members of the night markets who are involved as the part of this, locally operated help foundation, including the wrap stands, fried rice shops, steak shops, the snack stands too, they’re all, actively, involved.  If the visitors see the stickers, and tell the shops, “I want to order the A meal”, then, the visitors will get a free meal provided to them.

Wang told, the business owners were impacted greatly during the outbreaks, and mostly relied on the deliveries to make their own ends meet, and even though, the night markets opened at sundown, the shops would open up for business during the daytime too, to help out the less fortunate, the needy families more, the shops would, take the costs of the meals provided on themselves.  There were the shop owners who’d had someone who’d, ordered more than one serving of the free meals provided, he believed, “if I do it, I shall, trust the customers, entirely”.  The other shop owners also stated, “as long as there’s needs, we shall, provided to them, for free!”

During the outbreaks, the Lucky Families actually also provided the meals on the New Years’ holidays for those who are in need, for a total of, eleven days on end, “it’s okay that you’re in a bit trouble, just tell us, we’ll, allow you to eat and drink the soups until you’re full for free!”, to date, this service had run for nine whole years; as the outbreaks got harder, the program was restarted back in May of this year, hoping that more who needs can get the help that they needed.

So, this, is a locally run and operated assistance program, with a group of kindhearted individuals, all working together, to help those who are in need, and, this, is amazing, what this group of business owners are doing in the local night markets, they’re not, just, providing the assistance to the families, individuals who are in desperate need, this group is also, passing, a good sort of a legacy, that hopefully, will continue on.