80-year-old Lock Meng Swee has not stopped learning as a volunteer, and in the process, has been learning the qualities of humility.
"I am Meng Swee, 80 years old. I am humbled to receive this award. I have seen much suffering in life and feel honoured that Tzu Chi has given me the opportunity to provide helping hands for the needy. I vow to continue walking this path and shall be unwavered in my determination to better serve the community."
This award-winning speech by Tzu Chi volunteer Lock Meng Swee appeared in a booklet reporting the “Healthcare Humanity Awards 2017” event. On 26th April 2017, the elderly Mr Lock, whose face was dotted with age spots, walked onto the stage wearing a smart suit, to receive his award in the “volunteers” category from Dr Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources and Ministry of Health.
The “Healthcare Humanity Awards” had specially added new categories of intermediate and long-term nursing care, volunteers, and caregivers last year. This year, Lock Meng Swee is one of the volunteers recognized in the volunteers category of this illustrious award, and he even pledged to donate his entire cash award to Tzu Chi Foundation (Singapore).
Lock Meng Swee described the first part of his life’s journey as a directionless ship. During his interview, he lightly hummed the melodious tune of the verse, “The vastness of life is like floating on an endless ocean…” from the Tzu Chi song, “Life After Life on the Path of Enlightenment”.
Lock was born in Malaysia; he arrived in Singapore at the tender age of 12 to work as an office boy, helping with general administrative matters. He became a hawker at age 16, obtained a bus driving license at 20, and became a bus driver after that. Before his retirement at age 68, he was a taxi driver.
After retirement he enrolled to study Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), but because he lacked the necessary credentials for admission into the course, he could only sit in the classes to listen and couldn’t graduate with a TCM certificate. As such, he gave up the idea to become a TCM physician and switched to learning TCM massage. Later, he became a TCM massage practitioner. There is a wide variety of TCM massage techniques – including half-body massage, finger pressing, oil massage, pediatric massage, etc. In the short span of three years, he obtained more than a dozen TCM massage certificates.
However, as he aged, he found that he couldn’t perform the physically demanding work of TCM massage as well as before. As such, he began to have an intention of entering the wholesale business of Chinese herbs, and enrolled himself into a course on Chinese medicinal herbs. During the course, he came to know about Tzu Chi, and thus became a volunteer with the VWO. After graduating with a tertiary qualification from the TCM college, Lock joined the Tzu Chi Free Clinic in Redhill as a volunteer TCM pharmacist. Life is truly unpredictable; never in his wildest dreams did he expect his initial aspiration would pave the way for his involvement in community work and service to people.
Every Monday and Thursday afternoon, he would work quietly behind the scenes at the Tzu Chi Free Clinic’s TCM counter, ensuring that the patients’ details on the medicine packets match those on their NRICs, checking the daily dosage, and ensuring that the medicine labels correctly match the prescriptions. Each of these steps is a standard protocol that every TCM pharmacist will adhere to.
Lock Meng Swee dispensing medicine according to a TCM doctor’s prescription
When Mr Lock first came to serve at the Free Clinic, it was a real challenge for him to handle the computer system and the medicine packaging machine. In spite of these initial challenges, the constantly smiling elderly gentleman said, “If I bear in mind the Jing Si Aphorism, ‘Perform each task willingly and accept whatever comes our way with a cheerful heart’, it won’t be difficult.”
Fortunately, he always had the guidance of other volunteers in the process of learning new things.
Tzu Chi’s TCM pharmacist Lin Zi Lin, who has known Mr Lock for over 10 years, shared that as Chinese medicines are stored alphabetically according to the first letter of their Pinyin name, Mr Lock, who was never schooled in Hanyu Pinyin, mastered the subject through diligence and perseverance.
“I'd asked questions when I didn’t understand something, and over time, I gradually learned Hanyu Pinyin,” said Lock.
Mr Lock has always relied on his own perseverance to learn new skills and knowledge. Through the process of learning, he never forgets to give thanks to the guidance and assistance from other Tzu Chi volunteers.
Besides volunteering twice a week in the TCM unit of the Tzu Chi Free Clinic, his presence is often seen in the Tzu Chi Day Rehabilitation Centre, too.
His role there is to be the resident physiotherapist, Vinoth’s “assistant”, helping stroke and Parkinson’s patients or other patients with physical disabilities while they are undergoing physiotherapy.
Lock can be seen assisting patients in the Tzu Chi Free Clinic or the Tzu Chi Day Rehabilitation Centre.
Even though Lock is rather advanced in age, and helping patients can be physically demanding, he cheerfully said with a smile: “I enjoy doing the work, so I have the strength to do it!”
With regards to his cheerful elderly helper, Vinoth said that no matter what he is asked to do, he always responds with a simple “anything can” (i.e. no problem), and has never grumbled.
Whatever Tzu Chi’s physiotherapist, Vinoth, asks Lock to do, he always responds with a simple answer: “Anything can” (i.e. no problem).
‘Sudah makan? Tidur bagus?’ (Have you eaten? Did you sleep well?) Lock, who understands Malay, always speaks a sprinkling of simple Malay phrases in his interaction with Malay-speaking patients. In the beginning, as he does not speak English, he would use body language to communicate with Vinoth.
To facilitate better communication with the Indian physiotherapist, he enrolled in an English Language course. In the process of learning, when he encountered unfamiliar English words or phrases, he would use his mobile App to translate them into Chinese and learn them. Now, he is able to communicate with Vinoth in simple English.
Lock also personally participates in Tzu Chi’s (medical) home care visits, and is filled with gratitude whenever he speaks about his experiences. He can talk continually about his moving encounters during the visits. He admitted that he was anxious in his initial encounters with some of the patients. But after witnessing how the doctors showed no fear of the stench from patients, and laid aside their professional pride, to wholeheartedly comfort and treat the latter, he could feel their selfless spirit in serving. When asked if he felt lost or fearful in his encounters with patients now? He replied: “No Fear! Life is like this ‒ today the patient is suffering, perhaps tomorrow it may be me. Hence, I’ve learned to count my blessings while witnessing the suffering of others.”
“All things in life are intricately linked to each other, whether it is people or animals, we owe much to this world, including all creation, and even the air we breathe,” Lock shared his thoughts. “I will continue to serve so long as I can still walk.”
Along with Mr Lock, there were 97 other outstanding healthcare workers who have received this year’s prestigious “Healthcare Humanity Awards”. The “Healthcare Humanity Awards” are issued out of the Courage Fund, which was jointly set up by the National Healthcare Group, SingHealth Group, Singapore Medical Association, Singapore Nurses Association and Singapore Press Holdings Ltd.
The awards are given out annually to recognize outstanding healthcare workers who serve as inspirational role models for going the extra mile to offer care and comfort to the sick and infirmed. President Tony Tan and the Senior Minister of State, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources & Ministry of Health, Dr. Amy Khor, were the invited Guests of Honor at the Awards ceremony this year.
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