Tissue paper one-dollar: the reporter’s notes

Tan Tze How Kelvin | tzehow@nus.edu.sg
the ridge news
A NUSSU Publication

Feb. 10, 2008

Grab your copy of the ridge February issue to read the full article!

(Photos by Tan Tze How Kelvin)

To do the article, I sat outside Paragon at Orchard Road for an hour one afternoon.

It was just like any other day, most people were rushing to somewhere. We do not know where. Some stroll along.

And there is this group of people – making a living in between the lives of others. These “misfits” exist under the veneer of affluence.

There was this handicapped busker who plays a melancholic tune on his electrical keyboard.

Then there was also the well-clad executives preying on you – in attempt to get their insurance deal closed.

And there were the 17 year-olds persuading every person who walked pass him to buy a donation ticket.

Lastly, we have the tissue paper grannies – sitting under trees and traffic lights – waving tissue paper. – Three packs for one dollar.

It was a poignant sight.

I chose to do a story on them (the tissue grannies) because of my unusual obsession with old people and things.

As I sat down Madam Fan on the busy Orchard Road, I get from her a sense of resilience.

And as we share this space together, I know that she is there by choice – a choice to be independent and dignified.

It saddens me when I read on papers that people wrote in to get them “removed.” What is wrong with people who just want to make a living in their own rights? Furthermore, are they threatening in any way?

For Madam Tay, whom I visited at her one-room residence in Tiong Bahru, she was more “whiny” about her current state. That I do not deny.

However, she is actually quite resourceful. She sells not only tissue paper, but also instant noodles. Tay managed to survive despite having no one to turn to. And halfway through the interview, volunteers from a charity group passed her some can foods.

So does her resourcefulness make her less deserving of your compassion?

Some said “seeing is believing,” others are more sceptical. We all have our reasons – whether we choose to buy, or not.

Give these old people some credit – for trying to survive, for sitting under the harsh weather and for their resourcefulness.

Are they merely selling tissue paper? How much does your compassion cost? So what if they selling a pitiful look?

You think about it.