Kindness is more than deeds. It is an attitude, an expression, a look, a touch. It is anything that lifts another person. ~ Waleed Basyouni

When the Internet was rife with stories of how impossible it is to earn $7k as a taxi driver in Singapore, I got reminded of a kind Malay taxi driver with whom I had encountered more than 10 years ago.
This was the time when Arwah Mak was still alive and had to be sent to the private dialysis centre in Bedok very early in the morning (We had to reach there by 7.30am in the morning!), 3 times a week. Ayah worked at night and he will fetch her after work and I was tasked to send her to the centre in the morning before going to work. I remembered that I was on my first job after graduation at that time, and I was always late since I had to travel from Bedok to Ayer Rajah.

Anyway, it was quite a challenge at that time as she was always light headed and weak. Buses and MRT were totally out of the question as I cannot risk her falling. So we had to rely on taxis for transportation.
Life was rather pitiful for me back then. Before Arwah Mak can start on her dialysis, we had to fork out around $100 for each session; this was before she was accepted for NKF subsidies. My parents never expected me to pay for it, but I insisted to pay whenever possible, even for the taxi fares. As a result, I was always broke, heh.

One faithful morning, it was just a few days before payday and I was really struggling financially, to the point that I had to skip lunches and relied on the free drinks and biscuits in the company pantry. :p~ We met a pleasant Malay taxi driver who was friendly and chatty. We talked about general stuffs, which I cannot remember and once we reached the centre, he immediately saw that I was sending Arwah Mak for dialysis and told us that the ride was on him. Free of charge.

I almost cried. :’)

I do not know if it was because of the lack of nutrition / sleep (I had to OT till late at night to earn extra $$), or the kindness shown by him. We have lived in an uncaring meritocratic society for so long, where selfishness is rewarded and being kind is shown as a weakness, it is very rare to meet such a person in Singapore. They do exist, but are extremely uncommon.

He shooed us (gently of course, because I was quite adamant in paying the fare) and gave me a kind smile. And I have been kicking myself ever since for forgetting to take note of his license plate. I wasn’t able to repay his kindness, but I have been trying my best to pay it forward. Always paying it forward.. :)

Kindness is more than deeds. It is an attitude, an expression, a look, a touch. It is anything that lifts another person. ~   Waleed Basyouni