ah ma's red car

i had a very meaningful experience this afternoon. for that matter, i felt a little overwhelmed by how an old and frail elderly couple kept to each other, almost inseparable, and how the ah gong tried his best to seek medical help for ah ma. here's what happened.

i was at marine terrace earlier for my afternoon coffee. as i walked towards the coffee shop, i saw an elderly couple. they were probably in their mid-late 80s. both looked a little roundish, but frail. ah ma was on a wheelchair and ah gong stood at the back, hands on handles. they were at the linkway between two blocks and were hidden from the car park. as i walked towards them, they both smiled at me, the kind of gentle smile that we can only see in elderlies. and ah ma raised her hand slowly and called out to me in very soft voice - did u see a red car? the question came out of no where and i didn't understand what she meant. i walked towards her and moved my head down to her ears and asked - what red car? and she repeated softly red car as she looked at me, a little bewildered. i looked up at ah gong and he said - the red car that comes when we call 995.

my mind started racing. 995 is the number for medical emergencies in singapore. something must be wrong, i thought. i walked quickly out to the car park to see if there was an ambulance. the car park hidden away from the main road and where the couple stood was not visible from the car park. i walked back to the elderly couple. no, there wasn't an ambulance, i said. both of them looked worried but kept their half smiles. i told them to wait a while and i went to check again. i walked around the car park but there was just no ambulance in sight. when i got back, they had apparently gotten worried for they had also asked a few other passerby if they had seen a "red car". a few ignored them and walked off. i asked the ah gong if he recalled where he had directed the ambulance to. thankfully, he remembered and said "block 58". i walked out and looked up the block for the block number. it was block 59. oops...

i got worried for them and told them to wait while i walked out to the car park to check again. and to be sure there was indeed a call registered, i called 995. i spoke to the operator and explained the situation to him. thankfully they had their records and the operator told me their ambulance should be there within 5min. to be sure they get to the right location, the operator requested for me to help guide the ambulance when it arrives. i walked back to inform the elderly couple and they heaved a sigh of relief. i walked back to the car park and kept a look out as i kept visual contact with ah gong. when i saw the ambulance enter the car park, i waved at it frantically and managed to guide it to where i was. at the same time, i signalled for ah gong to push the wheel chair out. he had some difficulties  and i ran to him to assist. the whole feeling of pushing the wheelchair certainly felt so familiar. i had done the same for my own mum way too often back then. the memories just flashed by. 

the ambulance stopped and then we came faced with another issue. the ambulance attendants were all malay and the elderly couple spoke only mandarin. naturally, i became the translator. what happened? did you fall, did you experience chest pains, did you have high blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes, heart issues, medical history, etc etc etc. and after taking down the notes, they said they needed to transfer ah ma onto the collapsible bed. no i cannot, said ah ma. my legs are painful. i cannot stand. no, no, i cannot stand. she said as she grabbed the handle of her wheelchair tightly. her words all sounded way too familiar to me. my own mum had said the same thing back then. instinctively, i turned to her and calmly explain to her that the attendants will help her. she looked at me, understood me and let go of her hands. she looked at me again and she tried to stand up, amidst some pains. the attendants came together like a drill and held onto her diapers, waist and her shoulder and eventually managed to place her onto the collapsible bed. all these while, ah gong stood and looked on. and then came another issue. 

uncle, you cannot bring the wheelchair along, the attendant said. you need to bring it home and we will wait for you here. it took a while for ah gong to understand. and ah ma was obviously getting very worried. where is he going, where am i going. will i be going alone... she asked as she kept straining her head forward to catch sight of ah gong. seeing her in this state, i quickly reach out to her, held her hand and explained to her slowly about the wheelchair. as i spoke with her, i looked into her eyes and noted the blur cloudy eyes so commonly seen amongst elderlies. ah ma, don't worry ok, ah gong is going to put the wheelchair home and he will come down and accompany you to the hospital. i had to repeat it a few times before she understood. after i calmed her down, i walked quickly up to the ah gong who had started to walk home as he gingerly pushed the wheelchair. ah gong himself looked so frail. it was heartbreaking. i walked alongside and assured him all's well and that ah ma will be in good hands. and as i spoke to him, he suddenly turned to me, and held my hands with both hands, looked me into my eyes and asked in chinese what's your surname (in chinese, we don't ask for names, we ask for surname). i want to thank you...

it was really very touching.