The world of Tzu Chi May 2021 (Vol.134)

2021 • 05 44 I am happy I n early 2020, Dr. Tan Kiat Beng, a fellow volunteer from TIMA, phoned me and asked me to go with him to Penang General Hospital to visit a refugee boy named Sai Sai. Tzu Chi KL & Selangor and the UNHCR had signed a memorandum of understanding to work together to help refugees in the nation, so Tzu Chi volunteers have been visiting and offering whatever assistance is needed to refugees across Malaysia. I read some information about Sai Sai before visiting him at the hospital, and learned that his family was preparing to be interviewed for immigration to Canada. I thought this visit would be a one-off event. Sai Sai looked bloated when we met him at the hospital. It was the result of kidney failure: failing kidneys do not remove extra fluid, which causes swelling in the face and other parts of the body. I knew the venous catheter his doctor had installed in his neck for dialysis must have been causing him a lot of discomfort, but the boy greeted us cheerfully, with a beautiful smile on his face. He immediately captured my heart. Sai Sai’s father, U Sai Tun, told us that Sai Sai had been hospitalized for treatment when he was just one year old. As a mother myself, I could fully empathize with the pain the boy’s parents must have been going through. Although Sai Sai already had a central venous catheter installedwhen I met him, hewas not a good candidate to receive haemodialysis on a long-term basis due to vascular access problems. As a result, his doctors recommended switching to peritoneal dialysis instead. With a sparkle in his eyes and a warm smile on his face, Sai Sai said quietly to me after receiving a gift from us: “Happy!” After we got to know U Sai Tun better, we found him to be a very responsible, patient and loving father. He never made negative remarks or complained about anything. He believed in the karmic law of cause and effect, that everything happened for a reason. From him I learned how to face difficulties, suffering and illness with an open mind. A positive mindset like that prevents one from getting trapped in negative thinking and helps one learn and grow through difficulties. The Malaysian Government implemented the movement control order in March 2020 to rein in the spread of the coronavirus pandemic. As a result of the order, we could not go to the hospital to visit Sai Sai. Even so, we kept in touch with the family via phone calls, establishing very friendly relations with the family and winning their trust. I became the first person U Sai Tun called whenever Sai Sai was hospitalized. Even though faced with difficult circumstances, U Sai Tun and Sai Sai remained upbeat and optimistic. The positive energy they exuded made them popular at the hospital and allowed them to form great bonds with medical workers there. I saw courage, resilience and gratitude for his parents in Sai Sai’s eyes. He is an obedient, well-mannered child who respects his elders. I never heard him complain or throw a tantrum despite his treatments. What an endearing, winning child he is! Sai Sai experienced a lot of health By Teoh Bee Ling Edited and translated by Wu Hsiao-ting lobal Presence