Powering Through

        In my years, I have dealt with a lot of heartbreaks and seen a lot of people give up because of the smallest things. They believe that they no longer have a chance to be happy because of the circumstances that life has given them. I have had best friends giving up on life because of relationships and because they just couldn’t take it anymore. But everything looks so menial when put in a bigger prospective. For Jenny Pong Seow Chin, even when everything seems to fall apart, she manages to have a smile on her face each and every day.

         From a very young age, Jenny Pong Seow Chin has learned that things do not come easy, so she had to grow up very fast taking care of her siblings and helping her mother around the house. She never enjoyed the luxuries that some of us now take for granted yet regardless of all of that she tries to make everyone around her smile with her infectious laughter and her always positive attitude.

         Her situation is very much like another person by the name of Nick Vujicic.  Nick does not have arms OR legs. He was born with neither arms nor legs because of a birth defect. He struggled throughout his life because he always wondered whether his life was worth anything. He dealt with a lot of frustration because he had to deal with bullying and self-esteem issues from his peers because they did not know how to react to a person like him.

 
However, throughout everything and all the issues that he had to deal with, he is an inspiration to so many people. As he grew older, he learned to deal with his disability and he started to be able to do more things on his own.

Currently, he is living in Los Angeles inspiring people everywhere and he is the president of an international non-profit organization and has his own motivational speaking company called Attitude is Altitude. He inspires people to look beyond all the problems and put a smile on their faces. He inspires children that bully and are bullied. He gives them the message that ‘sooner or later everything will work out and if you put all your energies to something positive it can get you very far.’

         Jenny Pong Seow Chin’s legs were amputated when her doctor told her that she could never regain feeling in her legs. However, when she went into surgery, she realized that the incision that the surgeon created was uneven and because of that, it prevented her from sitting upright, causing even more problems. Because of that, she had to drag herself on her stomach in order to complete her chores. However, one of her brothers had a brilliant idea to create a trolley so that she could move around with more ease. With her family’s help, a trolley was constructed for her to move around easier and safer.

However, after 26 years of not being able to sit upright, she finally got the opportunity when her custom made wheelchair was presented to her this past Sunday. This wheelchair has been in discussion for 2 years. After it was made in October this year in Singapore, it wasn’t delivered till Dec 23 as Mr Lee, the maker has been waiting for Pong to heal from her stump infection.

The unforgettable day is Sunday, Dec 23 2012. A group of people went to Ipoh to change her life for the better. The photos show how excited she is to be able to finally sit up after so many years. It makes me so happy to have helped someone with something so important.

         Both Nick Vujicic and Jenny Pong Seow Chin have proven to me that through all the hardships that we have all been through, it is nothing compared to what they have had to go through for most of their lives. It gives me a new perspective for I realize that no matter how big I think a problem is, I can always pick myself back up and continue my day normally with a smile on my face.

If they can do it, then I can. 

         And, I must.

    

love and prosperity,
Anitha Thanabalan

Fruits for Lunch

‘Aiya, no need to get fruits la Lucy… We already have so much food for lunch today! Park inside the office!’ Ching Ching said to Lucy who was sitting in her car one morning. ]

Lucy giggled and nodded. ‘Okay, okay...’ Lucy said. Happy that she succeeded for the first time in talking Lucy to not get fruits for lunch, Ching Ching pranced away to open the office gate so Lucy could park her car inside. To her dismay Lucy drove off, leaving Ching Ching speechless standing with a wide opened gate, and me laughing hysterically at Lucy’s clever trick. She wins again this time! 

Every Tuesday when Lucy comes to the eHomemakers office, we always have fruits after lunch bought by her at the nearby mini market. Sweet juicy papayas, oranges that if turned out to be sour, were sprinkled on with a little bit of salt and the sourness was gone (a trick that Lucy taught us), guavas or sometimes even apples. No matter what, there would always be fruits. After eating lunch, Lucy would run off to the kitchen and bring out a big plate of fruits, which we always found room to stomach, no matter how full we were.

 

Every intern that joins eHomemakers, no matter how short their stay, HAS to meet Lucy, and there has never been one intern that was never fond of her. Some of the previous interns even called her ‘Aunty Lucy’.  During lunch sometimes, Lucy would talk to the interns about her journey with SLE, and how she became the woman of perseverance she is today, and us interns would listen attentively. Who would have thought that quiet Aunty Lucy who was busy counting eco-baskets in the next room had such a big story behind her?

 

There was once where I was cranky and on that same day, I had to film Lucy’s video journal in the office. I grabbed the camera and set up, sulking. Halfway into filming, I couldn't help laughing at Lucy’s gullibility, and my mood was instantly changed from sulky to happy.  (see video below)

Thanks to Lucy, the office is always cheerful and happy. Lucy never ceases to ease the stress level in the office, her bright smile and laughter always does the trick. She is an angel in disguise, and despite our stress and struggles in eHomemakers, Lucy is definitely a reason why we carry on doing what we do. There was never a day I remember being in the office with Lucy where I had a bad day.

 

I can’t wait till next Tuesday.  


Rhonwyn H.

 

Jenny Pong in the Hospital with Pains

                I have never been proud of myself when I get sick, for I’d whine for attention. Even a little flu would make me feel like my world is about to end and I’d pout and grumble for the stuffy nose, or the headache or any sorts of mild pain I might suffer.

                Never had I seen anyone as jovial as our Jenny Pong Seow Chin though hospitalized. Just recently on the 12^th of June 2012, Jenny was admitted at the hospital with fever due to bladder infection.

Pong in the Hospital with pains

                Although with pain, she could cheerfully greet the interviewer, something which is quite an admirable feat. I can only imagine the pain that she would be going through.  As she said, “Smiling is the only cure for any sickness.” It is something everyone should make an example of. Smiling isn’t hard; people claim that it only takes 17 muscles to smile. Shouldn’t we all be doing it often too?

                Smiling actually helps in pushing away the negative aura and bringing forth positivity. Try to be like Jenny – try smiling through your pain and you can feel the difference. Though it may not kill the pain, but it makes it more bearable.

                Morphine is the drug given to alleviate the pain that Jenny is having, but for the interview she refused to take the drug as it makes her feel like she’s “going to heaven”. She endured the pain with a smiling face to talk to the interviewers. Isn’t that something admirable again?

                It takes strength to stay awake despite the pain she’s going through. I cannot admire Jenny Pong more than I already have. If it was me, I’d rather have painkillers and I would not think of the repercussions if I was meeting anyone – but Jenny had taught me to stay strong. If she can do it, why can’t I?

                How I wish I was as cheerful as her the next time I am down with a fever and able to talk to people as if I was healthy, instead of showing a sour face – trying to gauge people’s sympathy. We should not just look at Jenny and say “Oh, she’s a great woman, and I want to be like her too.”

                We should set her as an example of a person we should be, not a person we want to be.

                Jenny Pong is definitely a woman of steel. She is the epitome of strength, the pillar of courage – an example of how people should persevere in the face of adversity. I hope that things get better for her, because she deserves better.