by Zachary Tham (P5 2021)

                It was raining cats and dogs on a Saturday afternoon. While John was walking home from the park and sheltering himself with an umbrella, he felt sad as the rain had interrupted his picnic at the park. Just then, a gush of wind snatched his umbrella off his hand. There were many cars on the road and one car ran over his umbrella, crushing it under its weight. Unfortunately, nobody could help him as there was no one else there at that time. He was left there alone, soaking wet.

 

                At once, John sought some shelter at a nearby bus stop. Seeing his broken umbrella on the road reminded him of a time when he had helped an elderly lady who had encountered the same bad luck. The events that unfolded that day remained etched on his mind and he recalled them vividly. On that fateful day, the elderly lady was walking down the same street as John during a thunderstorm. She wanted to go to the grocery store to get some groceries. She had bought all the groceries that she needed and left the store promptly.

 

                John saw the elderly lady leave the store. She wanted to look at the checklist that her family had given her as she wanted to make sure she had bought her family everything that her family needed. She was struggling to find it while holding on to her umbrella. When she finally found it, she had lost her grip on her umbrella and the strong wind blew her umbrella away. Her face was as dark as the clouds. She had also planned to go to the park for a stroll but the rain stopped her from going to the park.

 

                The elderly lady stood on the pathway, shivering. John noticed her from the corner of his eye. He did not want her to get sick as she had wrinkles on her face, proving that she was old, and he knew the elderly could get sick easily. He ran towards her and quickly sheltered her with his umbrella. Then, John gave her a towel that he had in his bag.

 

                John told the elderly lady to dry herself. After the rain stopped, they walked to the nearest store that sold umbrellas and he bought one for the elderly lady. She thanked John for sheltering her, lending her a towel, and buying an umbrella.

 

                “This is what I should be doing. We need to be considerate to others and help them when they are in need,” John replied with a smile.

 

                After he had bought the elderly lady an umbrella, they went their respective ways.

 

                At home, the elderly lady told her children about what had happened, and she commended John’s thoughtful actions. The very next day, the elderly lady treated John to a meal as she had run into him at a street junction. They soon discovered that they lived near each other. John was grateful that his generosity and thoughtfulness had moved the elderly lady. They became friends and the elderly lady would usually invite John over to her house for dinner.

 

                “Hi, John! Do you need a helping hand?” a familiar voice called out to him. John snapped out of his reverie and saw the elderly’s lady’s kind face. She was holding on to the same umbrella he had bought for her. John smiled and thanked her for helping him. From their friendship, John understood that kindness begets kindness.

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