The World Of Tzu Chi(Vol.115).

2019 • 10 22 Serving with joy and compassion Narrated by Zheng Yi-hui Information compiled by Tzu Chi Hualien Headquarters, with contributions by Lin Hou-cheng, Lin Shu-hui and Lu Xu-ling Translated by Lee Hui Yieng Photographs by Yan Lin-zhao P rincipal Wang Tian-ding and Teacher Huang Yu-nu were among the first-generation Tzu Chi volunteers in Taitung. Gong Mei-hua followed their lead and became a senior Tzu Chi commissioner, while I joined Tzu Chi in 1983 along withmy peers SongMei-zhi andYang Xia- mei. I was certified as a Tzu Chi Commissioner five years later. I enjoyed volunteering with Tzu Chi, but my husband Chen Sheng-feng disapproved and had no qualms expressing his displeasure. It was disheartening to be greeted by his sullen face at the end of each day, but his dourness failed to deter me from sharing my volunteering experiences aloud while preparing dinner in the kitchen. He would remain seated in silence, or sometimes, grunt dismissively and order me to stop rambling on. His response hinted that my words did reach his ears, so I unabashedly kept up the act and eventually managed to win him over. Beating the curfew Upon returning home from my volunteer duties, I had to endure not only my husband’s foul mood; I also had dinner to attend to. On occasions when my fellow volunteers and I returned to our base at the Taitung Tzu Chi Community Centre late at night after conducting home visits, we would sit down to a hearty meal of noodles prepared by the volunteers on kitchen duty. I would save a portion of the noodles for Sheng-feng, but he adamantly refused the noodles I brought home. This continued until I finally decided I am now 72 years old. Devoting the past 30 years to volunteering with Tzu Chi has served me well as an extended lesson in serving the masses with compassion. eature