CIKGU SITI

Remember my previous entry about my having tea with Kay and Shah at a 'mamak' restaurant and something happened? Well, here's the story. We were happily chatting away when we were suddenly approached by this 'bag lady'. She was wearing a dirty t-shirt, 'kain pelekat', blacks socks and sandals. She also had a bag which she slung over her left shoulder and a pair of glasses perched high on her head. Unlike others of her kind whom I've met many times before, she did not smell. In fact, she was quite clean. Like most people (or is it just me?), I have a tendency to look away or pretend not to notice or even walk away every time I see a bag lady or a drunk approaching me. So imagine my surprise (and Shah's too) when my friend Kay, started talking to this lady and asking all sorts of questions. She even asked her to sit with us at the table! Out of curiosity, I asked Kay if she knew this lady and who she was. Kay told me the lady was her former neighbour and also a former high school teacher who somehow had succumbed to emotional pressure and stress. Upon our asking, she (the bag lady) started relating her story to us. Somehow, her stories only revolved around pleasant moments in her life and she tried really hard to block the sad memories from her mind. We tried to extract the sad experiences out of her but she refused to tell. Kay,who knew her story, told us what actually happened and why she became that way. It was definitely a sad and tragic story. Shah and I really did not know what to say. We were totally speechless and numbed. I don't think it is appropriate for me to tell her story here since it is a very private matter. What makes me sad is how she ends up like this because of love. Love is supposed to nurture and not destroy but looking at this lady, it is clear that love has taken a toll on her. The emotional burden that she has is too much for her (or even anyone) to take. From Kay, we know that she owns a house but now, it has become a place where she stores all sorts of trash. She also has grown-up children who are willing to take her in but she refuses. It seems like she wants to live in her own world without anybody's interference. I wonder what will become of her and I pray that love will heal all her wounds.