The World Of Tzu Chi(Vol.112)

26 pecial Feature 2019 • 07 A contented life awareness on environmental conservation, much less engage in efforts to protect the environment. Agrowing commitment Two decades ago, Grandma Say was introduced to recycling work by volunteer Chan Cheam Huat, whom she encountered at the Buddhist centre she frequented near her residence in Pudu. Cheam Huat informed her that everyone is capable of doing their part for environmental conservation and encouraged her to start by preserving used sheets of paper, bottles, jars and other odds and ends, all of which he was willing to transport for recycling. The term “recycling” had crossed Grandma Say’s radar before, but she had yet to experience the recycling process first- hand. On her maiden visit to the Tzu Chi Pudu Recycling Point, she was taken aback by the sheer volume of recyclables occupying the premises, including mounds of garments, paper products, electrical appliances and furniture, which were T he bespectacled Say Tham Wah, or fondly known as Grandma Say, is already 81, her permed hair greying.Yet, she remains confidently undeterred in her recycling efforts despite repeated occurrences of such misunderstandings or misconceptions. She starts her day at 7 o’clock every morning, departing from her residence in PPR Raya Permai Sungai Besi with an eco- friendly bag slung over her shoulder, retrieving cardboard scraps, plastic bottles, jars, aluminum cans and other recyclables littered along the road lined with food-stalls. Whenever she chances upon recyclables discarded by the stalls, she would seek the stall owner’s permission to collect the refuse. “I’m a single-minded person. I’ll persist in my daily routine of collecting recyclables, even if others tease me as ‘the garbage lady’. I’ve been keeping at it for 20 years anyway,” shrugged Grandma Say with a smile, before lamenting that a large segment of society is still lacking Translated by Lee Hung Jiew