The world of Tzu Chi January 2020 (Vol.118)

TZU CHI 118 41 When Sau Yoke was trading vegetables at the wet market, she would collect recyclables from the vicinity and request her husband to deliver the collection to the Tzu Chi Kepong Recycling Centre, even after the family relocated to their new residence in Sri Damansara. She was only alerted to the existence of a recycling centre in her neighbourhood by volunteer Chew Lee Lee. Her involvement in recycling efforts has equipped her with a growing knowledge base of recycling processes, including the classification of recyclables. She had also started taking part in various Tzu Chi’s activities and volunteered for supporting roles inorganizing events. She enjoyed her time with Tzu Chi and accepted her son’s invitation to attend Master Cheng Yen’s Dharma lectures at dawn with an open mind. “When I first started listening to theMaster’s lectures at dawn, I couldn’t comprehend the teachings, but my heart was filled with joy. Hence, I persisted and took notes diligently. I’m illiterate as I didn’t have a chance to go to school. Attending the Master’s lectures gave me the opportunity to educate myself on the Dharma and learn lessons on life from the Master,” she shared. Chooi Fong was full of praise for Sau Yoke’s assiduous efforts, noting that the latter cherishes every opportunity to enrich her knowledge by not only paying rapt attention to the Master’s lectures, but also copying scriptures by hand on her own initiative to practise her handwriting. Sau Yoke is now a firm believer in the karmic law of cause and effect. Upon looking in the mirror for the first time after being discharged from the hospital, she was shocked by her own reflection – her hair had been singed clean off her scalp, a disquieting consequence she immediately attributed to karmic retribution. Sau Yoke (far right) treasures every learning opportunity, including meticulously copying sutra scriptures by hand.