The Help from a Stranger

Translated…

A month before my due date, my father killed himself by drinking agricultural poison in the bamboo forest out back, I’d dragged my twenty plus kilograms extra to Pingdong to his funeral; I’d given birth to my two long-awaited twin sons, every single day in the hospitals, I’d waited and expected for my husband to come after work to look after me, but, he just never showed up, and I’d just wanted, to leap out of the window of the high building.

After the month-long recovery, I’d returned back to work, but, I was still trapped by my own sorrows, and feared that my coworkers might find me, crying uncontrollably all the time, and so, I can only use my lunch break to head to the parks and circled around, to help soothe my unsettled heart, but that thought of “I don’t want to leave” kept circling above my head.

One day, I’d bumped into this middle aged woman who was out for a stroll. I’d not cared if she was a stranger to me, I’d asked her, “Can I talk to you?”, then, the tears came from my eye uncontrollably.

After she’d heard me out, she believed that I had a case of postpartum depressions, told me to go see the doctors immediately. I’d followed her advice and started going to the psychiatrists regularly.

And, it’s odd to, that as my life returned back to normal slowly, I’d bumped into this stranger on the way home from the hospital. She’d congratulated me on getting better, but declined my offer to treat her out for food and drink, it’s as if, she was a Buddha, sent from above, and after she’d done what she was supposed to, just, left in a jiffy.

So this, is the help from a stranger, and sometimes, you just needed someone there, to listen to you talk, and, this woman who helped the narrator out had given her some really sound advice, which helped the narrator get the help she needed, and, she’d turned the narrator’s offer to treat her to something down, because to her, she’s only showing some kindness to someone who was in need of it.