Wan of a Kind V2.0

A few days ago, a Friend of 50 years shared with me a story over dinner.  Her lady friend was comfortably seated on an MRT train when a pregnant lady boarded the train.  She stood up to give her seat to her but before she could take it, a young man rushed across her and took the seat. The young man settled down and started to wear his earphones and began watching a show on his iPad, completely ignoring the pregnant lady in front of him. It was obvious to him, and everyone else around that just-vacated seat that it was meant for the pregnant lady as the one who gave it up was still on the train, now standing next to the pregnant lady. Unfortunately, no one spoke up for either the lady who gave up the seat or the pregnant woman who was meant to be the beneficiary of that kind act.  It was a classic case of the bystander effect. The kind lady who gave up the seat then spoke up.  "Hello," she said ever so gently, "I gave up the seat for this lady, not for you," p...

On a recent Sunday afternoon, my friend Teng Lit and I joined up with a group of Japanese residents who called themselves the Green Bird.  Green Bird, according to their website , is a Non-Profit Organization founded in Harajku and Omote-sando.  Their motto is “A clean town also makes people’s hearts and minds cleaned.”  Their primary activity is trash-picking “to clean the towns we live and love.” Junko, a young Japanese businesswoman, is the leader of the group. Norie, a Japanese volunteer at our Kindness Gallery, introduced us.  There were 6 other Green Birds all ready to don on the green vest and gloves.  Armed with a litter-picker and litterbags, we fanned out into Little India for 90 minutes. We returned with our bags full of litter. Along the way, we were looked upon with curiosity and amazement.  A few stopped to find out who we are, and I never failed to tell them that foreigners are helping us to keep Singapore clean, ending with a question...

My friend Liak Teng Lit is right to say that we are a cleaned city and not a clean city. In fact we are not even a thoroughly cleaned city. A few weeks ago, I joined a number of community leaders and concerned citizens on a Saturday morning to do some litter-picking. There were 82 of us. Armed with a garbage bag and a picker each, we fanned out into the vicinity of several blocks of HDB flats. Within less than 2 hours, we returned with bags full of garbage. With community leaders and concerned citizens We found them under bushes, beside parked cars, at the children’s playground, on and around benches. There were rusted cigarette lighters, small bottles filled with stagnant water, broken glasses, styrofoam and plastic cups, drinking straws, paper bags, plastic bags, tissue paper, etc etc. Picking up litter What is most troubling is that in some cases, the garbage bin is only a few steps away. Last night my wife and I ate at a hawker center. There is in fact a tray re...