I just finished my a 4 hour "marathon" assignment and was rushing for the next one when a chinese girl approaches me at Ang Mo Kio Central. She went on and on about her plight, and asked me if I understood her Chinese every now and then. From her distorted speech, I could figure out that she was asking for money. She looked young, dressed in an old t-shirt, bermudas and slippers. I could see that there are scars on her legs. They way she speak is not normal, and I suspect she may have some mental problems.
She has to feed her 3 siblings, and is looking for a waitress job. Her parents are separated and they are living alone in a rented place. She mentioned something about her illness which I could not hear. I offered $5, but she asked for $8 to buy a meal for her siblings. I obliged thinking that it must have been hard on the 28 years old girl, to come out and beg for money to feed her siblings. She kept saying that she will try to return me the money. Up till now, I was still abit doubtful, and probably caught by surprise.
As she walked away, I followed her, and thought that a few dollars could barely last them through a day. She seemed to be hurrying towards somewhere, to buy food for her siblings I guess. I called out to her:
"Where do you stay"?
(girl) "Its a rented place".
"Can I visit"?
(girl) "My 2 brothers and sister are studying, and I don't want them to know that Im doing this outside".
"Did you go to school"?
(girl) "No, Im Malaysian, I stopped at Primary Sch"
"Where are your parents and relatives"?
(girl) "They are in Malaysia, my parents are separated"
"Do you have a contact number"?
(girl) "No, my line has been cut off"
"How can I contact you"?
(girl) "You can give me your number, I will call you, and I won't call to disturb"
I wrote down my name as Mr Seah and mobile number on a piece of paper.
(girl) "Can you write in Chinese"?, "I cant read English".
I wrote down my Chinese name as asked her if she can read it. Not many people can read the character in my chinese name, and she read it with ease. I believed she is Malaysian and chinese educated.
(girl) "What do you work as?", "Can you find me a waitress job?", "I have experience"
"I don't know anyone who can hire you, but I can ask around".
(girl) "Can I call you in a few days to check?"
"Im not sure if I can get you a job so soon"
(girl) "Ok, I will call you after Chinese New Year"
(girl) "Thank you, I will try to return you the money"
"Its ok, go ahead and buy food for your siblings."
I gave her some more money and left her my mobile number. thinking that if this is really a family in such desperate situation, I can definitely do more than a few dollars. I almost believe what she said, until I saw her asking for money for 2 other men near the place where she approached me as I drove off.
TIll now, Im not sure if she is telling the truth. She definitely sounded like she wanted to get a job, and I hope she does. Maybe her weird behaviour comes from the hard-reality of having to ask for money from strangers to feed her brothers and sisters. Maybe this is her first time doing this, and she might as well ask as much as she could, so that she does not have to do this anytime soon.
Do you believe her?
