A resident raised concerns after spotting a woman drying a rattan chair on the corridor wall of the 11th floor, calling it dangerous.
The woman who placed the rattan chair there later explained that she had been keeping an eye on it the entire time to make sure it was safe, and that she was only drying it under the sun to disinfect it before donating it to charity.
A reader who did not want to be named told Shin Min Daily News that at Block 16, Eunos Crescent, someone had placed a rattan chair on the corridor wall to dry, which the reader felt was risky. “I first saw it last Monday (Oct 20) around 10 am. I thought it was dangerous to dry a chair like that, so I took a photo with my phone,” he said.
The reader added that the following Friday (Oct 24) morning, when returning home after buying groceries, the reader saw the same thing again and decided to contact Shin Min Daily News through its hotline. “I don’t usually notice such things, but seeing it happen twice made me feel I should report it.”
When reporters went to the block, they found the woman who had been drying the chair, Madam Lim. She became a little emotional when she saw the photo. “Yes, I dried the chair on both Monday and Friday,” she said.
Madam Lim also demonstrated how she placed the chair on the corridor wall, saying the wall was wide enough to support the rattan chair securely.
“Rattan furniture cannot be left under the sun for too long. I only dry it for about half an hour, and I always keep watch from my living room. If someone walks by or if there is strong wind, I will immediately bring it in,” she explained.
She said she would feel terrible if the chair ever fell and hurt someone, since she had been neighbours with the residents for decades.
According to her, the rattan chair has been in the family for many years.
“Earlier this month, my husband fell at home and is now recovering at a community hospital. When he is discharged, we plan to hire a helper to look after him, so we need to clear some space at home. That is when I found this old rattan chair,” she said.
Madam Lim said her children told her to throw it away, but she could not bear to.
“I decided to donate it to a charity instead, so I cleaned it and left it in the sun to dry and disinfect before giving it away.”
While it is understandable that neighbours may be worried about safety, but it also makes one wonder, why the bao toh kia cannot just walk over Madam Lim to inform her of his or her concerns about the rattan chair leh? Why need to report her? What happened to the sense of community spirit or Kampung Spirit that we once had?
Nowadays, people a bit a bit also cannot, a bit a bit also want to complain. Always so quick to complain or call out others, instead of simply talking things out. Maybe a little more understanding, and a little less suspicion, would make our neighbourhoods kinder places to live in?
What do you think of this situation?
