A Simple Happiness

Translated by Dawn Lim

One sunny morning, the 7979 co-workers and the volunteers from Likas Baptist Church (Kota Kinabalu) paid a visit to Uncle Chai, a recipient of the Manna Food Bank. Uncle Chai, who is nearly 70 years old, is the only breadwinner of the family. Uncle Chai and his wife have 2 OKU daughters.

The car came to a halt on a small hillside, “The car has to be parked here as we can’t go any further. We have to get off the car and walk up”, one volunteer said with a smile. It turned out that the house was on top of a small hill and they have to hike up a slope to reach it. So, the three of them quickly grabbed the food bag and started to hike up the slope.

After Uncle Chai’s wife, Kak Wee, warmly invited the volunteers into her house, she cheerfully explained that Uncle Chai was not at home that day as he had gone out to work. The short sentence could not cover up her joy that Uncle Chai found work that day. Although Uncle Chai does not earn much for a day’s work, it was precious. During the chat, the co-worker asked Fung , the eldest daughter, what does she like to eat. “Saya suka makan mushroom”, Fung replied happily while looking at the food stuff on the ground. The small cans of food bring joy to Fung’s life.

The volunteers learned that Uncle Chai’s house was newly built. The house has a simple layout with three small rooms and one toilet. The volunteers were concerned that although there is an opening at the wall, but it’s not a window. “What happen when it rains?” the co-worker asked, pointing at the opening. “We just use mops. It’s nice to have a house now. We were worried as we didn’t have a place to live,” Kak Wee replied. It turned out that during the pandemic, other than having insufficient food, they were also worried about accommodation. The land where their previous house was on was being developed and they had to be relocated. Thanks be to God for He cares for the poor! When the church heard about their predicament, they came to help. The construction of the house was interrupted due to the pandemic, but the relocation deadline was drawing near. In desperation, Uncle Chai found a few people to help him build the house. Although the structure of the house is not stable and due to limited materials, they can only have a wall with just an opening but without windows, for this family of four, having “a roof to cover their heads” is a very beautiful thing. An income from a day’s work, a small can and an imperfect dwelling are their source of happiness when they barely have enough resources.  One would not feel lacking in life if one is contented – this is simple happiness.