At first glance, it may seem that there is a fun fair in place at this area, but on closer look, we will see Mr Lim, a 84 year old gentleman whose love for children never runs dry. His schedule runs Monday to Fridays from 430pm - 730pm where he will lug along boxes of toys and walkers for the little ones at the HDB block to play with. Come rain or shine, he is always there, setting up the booth for young ones to play, be it in the open area or within the pavillion. 

Speaking to him on why he does what he does, he mentioned to me his love for children is there and believes in a community spirit where he can help and watch young toddlers grow up. Some of these toddlers he has watched them go from crawling to running around. As I spoke to him, there were numerous parents who came with their toddlers who came by to thank him before leaving. 

As he talks to me, he shuffles around the playground area with a broom and dustpan in his hand where he keeps the environment free of twigs and fallen leaves such that the toddlers can play safely. Once in a while, he runs over to get this playmat down as the wind blows it, to place it at the base of a slide which he deems is relatively fast where children may get abrasions if there was a improper landing. He also has a collection of plastic balls where he lets all the children play with and he heads over to pick up those that have been blown further away from the play area by the wind.

Sharing with me a bit more, he is a one man show, where he actually runs the whole event every weekday himself. Occasionally some of the other residents do join in and help him carry the toys to and fro and also in packing up. He also makes it a point to regularly wash with dettol all the toys to keep them clean. The local RC, in this case, it will fall under the Holland Bukit Panjang Town Council has helped to provide one storeroom to store all the toys and walkers. 

He believes that more can be done in the community. Personally, I think it will be great should the local Town Council encourage with full support the community spirit that Mr Lim helps to cultivate. 

Ending off, I thanked him for allowing Baby Enyu to play with the toys. And I asked him whether there are other things that I could do for him. He briefly mentioned a first aid kit such that children if injured have something to fall back on. I promised him that one will be on the way for him as I will get it packed and ready for him.

Thank You Mr Lim for being a light in the community, shining bright to allow the young ones to smile and enjoy!

My wife, baby Enyu and I were just on the way to cross a zebra crossing when we saw a bus heading towards the zebra crossing. The driver saw us and immediately halted to a stop. He gave us a big smile and gestured for us to go ahead to cross first. 

We proceeded to cross the zebra crossing and waved at him whilst giving a nod of appreciation at the same time. What was surprising was how baby Enyu also waved back at him. We could see that he had a wide grin and it was indeed a happier day for all of us!

Kindness always surprises!

There is always an opportunity for kindness, and it is up to us to step up towards it.

My Wife and I were just around Ghim Moh Market area for breakfast and we were both enjoying our meals when I felt a little tap to the shoulder.

On turning around , I noticed that it was an elderly man carrying a bag of tissues who has tapped me on the shoulder. He was accompanied by an equally elderly woman with a walking stick for the visually handicapped.

Immediately, I reached towards my pocket to grab a money note to pass to them and asked how they are doing. They spoke briefly and thanked me before moving on. Hopefully, with time and the effort as a community, we can let our elderly generation integrate seamlessly with the changing facets of our nation!

Whenever an opportunity for kindness knocks on the door, let us be the one to open it give the touch of love to others!

Appreciation always counts!

Just the other day, I treated one of the patients for scarring issues. What happened three days later was a word of thanks and appreciation that some of my colleagues found on social media. A fuzzy warm feeling was in my heart and I was glad that the patient had great results!

Likewise, in all that we do, whoever we meet, let us appreciate others by telling them what they do is awesome!

Take a step to talk to the grab driver, the hawker selling you chicken rice and just to tell them that they are doing a great job and you appreciate it!

October is always about Children’s day and this year it has also brought me smiles when I see how happy the children are.

Even though we might only be able to make someone else happy for a moment, it is always still worth it.

Parking the car at a parking lot scarce area is always an uphill task! Today Lorraine and I were circling this carpark at beauty world centre and we went all the way up to the 6th storey before coming back down to the 2nd storey, still looking for a parking lot. Somehow, all the lots seemed to have been prefilled with cars and many cars were also circling around just like us. 

As we drove really slowly, there was a pedestrain who was walking across the carpark. We halted as he wanted to cross the road. Just after he crossed the road, he looked straight at us and gestured that he was actually leaving and his car was just a few metres behind us and that we can have it. We waved a sign of Thank You from within our car. Even though no words were spoken, we knew what each other was saying. 

He got into his car, drove out, and we were given a space to park the car. 

No matter where we are, gestures of love and appreciation can change the community!

We were walking around Gardens By The Bay and visiting the orchid exhibits along with the national day celebrations when we felt a pat on our back. 

Turning around, a lady held in her hand one piece of baby socks which has fallen off Baby Enyu as we toured the Gardens. We thanked her for stepping out to pick up our baby socks admidst the crowd and for making it a point to catch up with us to return the sock. A community who steps out of their own comfort zone is a community who cares!

Stepping out of our comfort zone to help others can always bring a smile to others!
​A pair of baby socks !

Recently. Lorraine and I were walking along some of the toy shops and caught sight of a couple with their little girl trying persistently to catch a duck soft toy from a claw machine. They did multiple tries but still did not manage to get it in the end. By this time, there was already a small crowd of people watching with excitement. As they still did not manage to get the duck soft toy, the family and little girl walked to another area of the toy shop, slightly disappointed. 

We thought it would be nice to give it a try and if we managed to get it, it could be a little gift to cheer up the little girl’s day! If we were in the shoes of that family, we would have loved for a pleasant surprise as such. After exchanging some tokens, we went forth to give it a try. Much to our surprise, we managed to catch it out from the claw machine! Both of us were excited with joy but we remembered what we had in our hearts.

We took the duck soft toy in our hands and went forward to the little girl and her family, and gestured for her to have it. Her smile was instantaneous and her Dad & Mum had her thank us! That lit up the rest of our day! We were just as happy as she was!

The willingness to give up things that we own can help to shape our community of love. If all of us commit little acts of love in our lives, it can bring forth winds of change in our community!

** All of us can do with a little happy duck soft toy to cheer us up!

We were looking to print a photo and passed by a printing shop. The staff were all caught up with attending to a client who has arrived earlier with more extensive needs. Upon sending in our photo, the gentleman who was explaining the needs of his order stopped and asked the staff to help with settling our straightforward order first as his will take more time. We thanked him for his kind gesture in inconveniencing himself for the convenience of others. It was a feeling of warmth that resonated through that shop and the mood was uplifted. 

Each of us can live our lives as a model for others. Individually, we might just be a drop of kindness, but together, we are a big ocean of love such that no matter where we go, we can bring forth the magic of kindness.