The world of Tzu Chi July-August 2022 (Vol.142)

TZU CHI 142 35 every precaution sorting recyclables outside the house with their masks on, and then sent the items to the recycling centre straightaway. “Sometimes when there were too many recyclables, my husband would send them to the recycling centre by car. Otherwise, I would tie and transport them on the motorcycle. We would make four to five trips a week. Some people wondered why we like spending so much time at the recycling centre, and I would share with them that it is where we protect the Earth and cultivate ourselves spiritually,” Wang Mai’s eyes crinkled when she smiled. Breaking old habits Wang Mai came from a poor family in Johor; she is the youngest of the brood. Her mother raised seven children single-handedly. Due to financial constraint, she stopped schooling after primary school to work and ease her family’s burden. Back then, she lived in an estate, and helped her mother with paddy and vegetable planting besides rubber tapping. When she was in her 20s, a relative matchmade her with Poy Sang, who was in Kuala Lumpur. Coming from a similar background, the duo connected and cherished each other, eventually leading them to marriage. “I am not afraid of hardships or poverty. After our marriage in 1977, I rented a stall in Gombak’s wet market to sell vegetables and fish,” Wang Mai recounted. Since selling live fish provided higher profit back then, Poy Sang would slaughter the fishes upon request while Wang Mai oversaw the sales of the vegetables. It was the couple’s dream to own a house of their own instead of living in the illegal wooden house they rented. After much toiling, they rented a nearby wooden house, which Wang Mai turned into a grocery store. With the wet market stall and grocery business, the couple finally saved enough to buy an apartment, which they are still residing in until now. This is where they started a family. In 1996, the authorities acquired the land where their grocery store was, for road reconstruction, indirectly ending both their businesses. Fortunately, as their two daughters had already grown up to be responsible university students, it did not add to their worries. Instead, they opted to retire. To Wang Mai, who was used to regular physical work, the early days of their retirement were long and boring. It was not until 2011 that she found the ‘meaning’ of her retirement. That day, the couple passed by the then newly established Tzu Chi Sentul Recycling Centre, where Tzu Chi volunteers and some public members were busily sorting recyclables. It was not an entirely new activity to Wang Mai, as she used to keep recyclables like cardboards, carton boxes and newspapers in their store for the needy foragers to sell for money. “Seeing the volunteers stepping on aluminium cans and separating coloured from white paper, I felt I could do it too. So, when we went to drop off recyclables, we stayed to help with the sorting,” Wang Mai recalled. With the encouragement from volunteer Soo Kam Yip, the couple began participating in recycling and other Tzu Chi activities diligently. As they both grew up in impoverished conditions, they appreciated recycling as it helps save Mother Earth and also the needy. Eventually, they joined Tzu Chi and became dedicated volunteers. Through charity visits, Wang Mai witnessed a young lady, who worked as an escort, became paralysed due to a fall from the second floor when she was intoxicated;