Do you see beggars on the streets? Ok you seldom see them in Singapore that’s for sure, but that doesn’t mean they don’t exist.

Maybe they are not really beggars. They are just some old uncles and aunties selling tissue paper at four packets for a dollar. Or they just go around hawker centers or digging into bins collecting empty can drinks. Or they just stand at one side of the road, giving out flyers.

These senior citizens most likely do not have any children to feed them or they have unfilial children. Their parents have spend lots of time and effort just to bring them up but yet these children do not spare a thought for the effort that their parents put in to rise them and just abandon them just like that. These people are what I call jerks. The parents being old would not be able to find work easily since even graduates cannot even find a job nowadays. They can only work as toilet cleaners if the job is available which is also hard work especially for a 50-70 year old auntie.

Thus, seeing their plight, we should lend them a helping hand. How? By buying their tissue and by taking a flyer. They are in such a desperate situation with no jobs available that they have no choice but to sell tissue and flyers as people who whom they approached will evoke sympathy for them and buy tissues from them or just take their flyers. However, they cannot really earn much from selling tissues and giving out flyers and they can barely support themselves.

However, some people just ignored the old uncles and aunties completely and walked past them like they are not there, even when they approached them. These people did not help the old uncles and aunties maybe because they find them a hassle or they do not want to spend money buying tissues because they don’t need them. I feel that no matter how much a hassle it is or no matter how much you don’t need the tissue, you at least can fork out a few dollars to the elderly as a form of donation instead or just by taking the flyer which is FREE. Isn’t that what all Singaporeans look forward to? They are already very old and do not have the support of their children and thus we must try our best to help them. They need to feed themselves and thus if they cannot feed themselves, there can only be two things they can do. First, they starve to death. Second, they fight for survival. How? They steal and rob others off their money, although I have never come across any elderly robbing or stealing from anyone. This is just a theory or it only applies to those who are younger and are desperate for money. Therefore, if we offer to help them as much as possible, it can reduce the number of theft cases significantly.

I always see a poor uncle on my journey home from training at around 7pm-8pm at Choa Chu Kang Interchange. He is always standing at the entrance giving out flyers. He wore a very sad face hoping to appeal to the public and I often pity him but all I can do to help him is to take the flyer as there is only so much I can do.

Then again, the real world is cruel. If you are not competent enough you will not survive. However, those that are competent should really share some of their money to the less fortunate as they are also fellow human beings. Even with that said, how many people are willing to give for no return? Very few of them will do that as humans are selfish by nature and there is little you can do to change that unless through education which sometimes might also not work.

Maybe we can solve this problem by allowing those selfish people to live a life being poor and full of hardship for a short period of time. Only then will he be able to understand what it feel and will sympathize for the less fortunate more.

As the Chinese saying goes “生在福中不知福” Before you buy something next time, make sure that you really need it and not want it. If you really do not need it then maybe you can donate the money to those of less fortunate.

So next time you see elderly selling tissues or giving out flyers, keep this in mind that you are a lot more fortunate than them and should thus lend a helping hand.