a late cold night
One late cold winter night, we heard the moan of an old lady from the nearby house. The old lady was living alone with her ailing husband who is also bedridden. Her sons were living in Australia.
The old couple refused to leave their homeland and therefore live alone. We left sorry for them and as neighbors, we often help them in any way possible.
It seems on that cold winter night some burglars had entered their house through the kitchen window which was not properly grilled and locked.
The burglars had overpowered the old people, tied them to the chair and cot respectively, and took away six hundred dollars and jewels. The old lady managed to free herself from the bonds and crawled to the corridor with a moan which we all heard.
Several people rushed over immediately and the men tried to untie the old man and then inform the police. The women were helping the old lady by applying cold water to the bruises and rearranging the furniture.
The rope was very tight and the old man suffered bruises on his skin. Two of us ran out to see if the culprits were still around. Soon we heard police sirens, two patrol cars screeched to a halt in front of our house and we saw policemen running up the stairs.
The policemen made a thorough search and got statements from the old people. The old people’s monthly pension money and some of the jewels which they valued were gone.
Messages were sent to their sons abroad. One week later one of their sons returned to Singapore and brought the old people to Australia. Despite the robbery, the old couple was reluctant to leave Singapore. Finally, they were persuaded by us to accept their son’s offer.
On the date of their departure, the old couple thanked all those who came to help them in their hour of need.