A couple of social workers from Taiwan have visited our little island recently to acquaint themselves with the situation of homelessness here.
My takeaway: information on an upcoming event in Seoul.
From Agent L (a pseudonym): “This conference will explore housing policies and the situation of homeless people and migrant-workers in Japan, Korea, Hong Kong and Taiwan. It features multiple site visits and local engagement.”
It seems the wind is now blowing in the direction of community-building, in various small pockets of society.
I have been learning a lot, through such communities, over the past few days.
But, as an eccentric-yet-wise elder said, “I learnt a lot. But by the time I learnt a lot, I am dying. So I wrote a book to pass on what I have learnt.”
This is by way of passing it on.
P. S. I am grateful for no Covid lock-down today. shivers at the thought.
music
The young pianists – twenty-somethings, they looked like – were performing on either a Steinway or a Fazioli: grand pianos. Bach, and Liszt, and Mozart seemed to be popular choices. One of the pianists even nourished the audience with her own composition, a piece for a small ensemble: 1 harp, 2 cellos, 2 double basses, 1 percussion (drums), 1 horn, 1 flute, 1 clarinet.
That pianist-composer thanked God for holding her hand while walking through difficult times. She shared that her hands had suffered an injury while preparing for a performance.
For my mother, and her long-term supporter, who happens to be my father.
I first started volunteering with Homeless Hearts of Singapore (HHOS, for short), in late 2022. I had read an article in Channel NewsAsia, about this organisation. I looked up their website, and filled in a registration form, and then received a call from Derek shortly.
