When I was young, my parents told me that I should slog when I am young

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An honorable member of the Coffee Shop Has Just Posted the Following:

Working hard after age 65?


August 15th, 2013 | Author: Contributions




A "sole proprietor" at "Thieves Market" selling his
wares.


Last Monday, 12/08/2013, was the start of a new work week after a long
weekend of five continuous holidays in Singapore. Taxi commuters were scared
then. Monday nights had always been customarily slow nights for taxi drivers,
nothing was moving. The phone booking was quiet and the taxi stands everywhere
were full of idle cabs. Some drivers cruise the streets downtown hoping to catch
a fare, others give up and call it an early night and many resign themselves to
the situation. They park on a stand and wait. To relieve the boredom, they pull
out a newspaper or book, talk on the phone, get out and chat with the other
drivers, eat, sleep… anything.

What the hell was going on? Hardly anyone was taking a cab. Had the long
holidays bankrupted everyone so much so that no one can afford taxis anymore?
Has everybody spontaneously decided to lose weight and get in shape by walking
everywhere? Or was it because of the long holiday where everybody is out
stations? But for those willing to pay for a cab, they were not short of taxis
and waiting time was a breeze.

It was a miserable night for most cabbies, no doubt. I’ve read my cell phone
messages twice, something I’ve never done, ever. But I’m not perturbed because I
know that commuters need time to adjust to the new working week and will come
back.

Perhaps sensing my conviction, a current booking came in around midnight to
pick someone at Admore Park. The final destination was the airport. It was my
first booking for the night and a good one to the airport. I was absolutely
delighted and rushed to the pickup point within minutes.

As I rolled into the lobby, there was a middle-aged white man in full suit,
standing on the sidewalk holding a couple of overstuffed suitcases. He has a
look of a successful business man. I loaded his stuffs into the trunk. He opened
the door, pushed his stuff over, then heaved himself into the taxi. I punched
the meter and off we went.

“How are we doing this evening?” said the grizzled man in a voice
that could fill an auditorium. It was a curious change in protocol, as I usually
do the greeting.

“Fine, Sir” I said.

“Busy, tonight?” he continued in a clarion call.

“Not really. In fact, it’s been pretty slow”. I replied in a sullen
voice.

“Well, maybe I’ll change your luck for you,” he said in guffaw.

“I’d appreciate that, Sir. Hope it goes both ways.” I answered as
intelligently as I could.

The quirky man was an over enthusiastic conversationalist and soon ventured
into my personal territory, asking my about my former jobs, family, friends,
hobbies etc..etc… I don’t usually reveal much of my personal life to anybody,
much less a stranger in my cab. But he was different, especially his gregarious
manner and sincerity of his voice. While I usually do the asking, I found myself
doing the talking. For the rest of the journey till the airport, I told the
inquisitive man a bit about my growing up, my family, about how I lost my last
job and became a taxi driver…….

At the airport, as he gathered his things, he told me, “You should stop
driving a taxi and get to teaching as a private tutor. Give me your phone
number. I might have something to offer you”

“Thank you, Sir. I’m now in my twilight yearsand would
like to “take it easy” for the remaining days I have left” I replied
nonchalantly.

As I drove away, my head was swimming. Shouldn’t I gave him my contact? Maybe
he has a business proposition for me or maybe he wants me to be his secretary? I
didn’t know. Still don’t. But it certainly got me thinking. Am I really old at
65 and should therefore, extinguish my fire of ambition? Maybe I should put on
my armor and go into battle again in our cut-throat business world.?. No…no…no
way!. I don’t want to slog or be slaughtered at 65, if I can avoid it.

I’m not very poor, nor rich. Healthy but feeble. I’m lucky to be able to
still drive a cab to pay for my many essential bills in this expensive country.
My retirement is still a dream. I’ve to be self-reliant as there is no social
safety nets here. My children, relatives and friends have their own loads of
problems to take care. I must not burden them. So, I try my best to earn and
live within my means. Now, I’m happy with what I have and that’s good enough for
me. But one day, in the not too distant future, I’ll grow old, weak and unable
to work. Who will give me a helping hand? I dread the dawn of that day.

Presently, my deepest sympathy goes to those impoverished elderly folks who
are incapacitated and had to depend on the miserable government handouts to
survive. Is ameliorating the cost of living of the elderly poor, wrong and
ruinous on our Government’s coffer? Will helping the truly poor elderly results
in massive taxation and overloading the system, reducing the incentives to work
and to save and care for one’s family?.

I say no, no…no. This Government’s policy on welfarism needs a paradigm
shift, soon, from one of penurious assistance to a more altruistic support for
the elderly destitute. Is a shelter, two meals, and medical care for the elderly
poor asking too much of the Government or is this Government still adamant on
passing this integral responsibility to the private sector or are their mindset
still stuck in the LKY’s era?.

With our rapid ageing population, the state must bear bigger portion of funds
for all aspects of assistance to the deserving elderly poor. I hope our PM’s
National Day Rally speech this coming Sunday, Aug 18 will not be a standard
mantra like before and a great disappointment for the elderly poor and
Singaporean in general.

When I was young, my parents told me that I should slog when I am young and
reap the fruits at retirement. But now, where is my fruits and retirement? I
think my fruits are kept in lock in CPF, so how to have retirement?

Now, coming back to that gentleman who took my cab to the airport earlier. I
think he wants me to be his private chauffeur? I’ll never know. So be it.

After deducting all costs, I earned about $50 for the night and it was more
than I could ask for on a miserable Monday
night.

James
Lim

* The author is a 65 year-old
Singaporean cabby. He became jobless at 55. Unable to find a suitable job and
with a family to support, James became a taxi driver. He blogs to make his ‘dull
job’ a bit more interesting. He blogs at http://cabby65.blogspot.sg.


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