A Love Story

There was a man just now. Clothes dirty with dirt and grime, hair mangy and unkempt. An Indian man, probably one of the countless homeless people wandering the streets of KL. I looked at him the same way I looked at pillars, or boxes, or pavements - with no emotions.

Then in an instance he changed how I saw him. He took out an RM1o note from his pocket, and looked at it long and hard. He rubbed his stomache, hungry no doubt. He looked at the food on display, and looked again at his money. All the while his hand was rubbing the grumbling tummy. He seemed torn. He probably wasn't sure whether should he spend the money on food now, or wait until he's desperate for it. The look on his face alone struck me like a hammerblow, displaying his unsureness and desperation all at once. In my mind, I'm almost sure he would just leave without eating a single morsel, saving the money for later. And perhaps that was what he was thinking too.

Just then the lady who owned the stall gave him a polysterene pack filled to the brim with rice, vegetables and fish. He quickly offered his note to the lady, and she just waved it away. She even gave him a can of Zappel for free, attending to him like he's just another paying customer like me. She treated him with dignity. This twist again struck me a blow, the kindness shown by this Malay lady really moved me. It was unasked, unforced. I thought this scene could get no better.

But it did. The man ate maybe half of his share at one of the empty tables. Then, probably sated his hunger pangs, he stood up and offered the rest of his food to the rest of us. Imagine that, him offering his food to us, the moneyed patrons who might not even blink an eye to pay Rm10 (or RM100 for some) for our food. The man who had least was the most thoughtful of us all, oh the irony of it.

I am terribly humbled. This is humanity at its' core. The hungry man who has nothing was offered salvation by the lady, a stranger who saved him the tough decision, money and dignity of not having to beg. Yet, he has the thought to offer his meagre share to everyone else, while we did not even think of offering ours to him. Both of them showed me what is it that's missing in our world. It is pure, unspoken and unheralded basic love for our fellow human beings. Happy Valentine's day, folks.