EAT LESS AND LOVE MORE
LIM THE REMARKABLE HORTICULTURALIST OF
BANGKOK
I have been lucky enough to meet some
special people this past year and none more remarkable than the Humble Man of
Bogor, Pak J. So, when he invited me to visit the “master”-the one who has
mastered the art of living well, healthy and happy; I couldn't resist.
Lim had chosen the Khong Sea Food
Restaurant in Bangkok, close to a Metro stop and was already at the restaurant
when we arrived at the appointed time.
Humbly dressed in shorts, white T shirts
(his uniform, Pak J told me later) and slippers, he exudes humility while you
are made aware of the fact that you are in the presence of a remarkable man.
Now 85 years old, he had lived in Bangkok
for nearly 40 years. He was born in Singapore, then part of the British Straits
Settlements and is an expert on aquatic plants.
Armed with an incredible feat of memory, he
can remember and describe the plant encyclopaedia. Wanting to know how an 85-year-old
Chinese man had such a remarkable memory, I was further astounded by the fact
that he can remember around 100 telephone numbers of his clients including the
country codes, and recite them from memory!!
The mobile numbers in China are a bit difficult,
he said, they have far too many numbers, longer than the usual 13, which he
finds easier to remember.
Any particular method or tool for
remembering? I queried
No, I just remember, it has always been
like that!
He was in charge of ordering the dishes at
this restaurant, Chinese seafood fare, not a single item could be labelled
unhealthy. No alcohol was consumed, but there was plenty of hot Chinese tea. I
noticed that there was no water accompanying the dinner
Crab Curry, two plates
Fish, two plates, two different fish, two
different ways of preparing
Green vegies (shoots of pumpkins)
A noodle dish
Steamed rice with Prawns
Giant prawns in sauce
Snails
Mango, Cassava in Coconut Milk
(Altogether 12 dishes, the bill amounted to
120 usd)
He was in charge of the conversation,
flowing in different directions and levels, content congruous with a long well
lived life. No personal details or gossip.
Breaking traditions at an early age, he has
been a good father, a good businessman and more importantly a good friend.
Many anecdotes some of which cannot grace
the pages of this blog flowed. Never a bad word against all the people who came
across his life, never a discriminatory remark, no disapproving tone, the
wisdom of a life well lived, continued to be lived. He does not eat dinners on
ordinary days, a piece of fruit may be, but this routine is broken when friends
are in town, such as this night, this rule does not apply.
I have always eaten less than average,
while heartily enjoying this meal of his choice, compared to others I always
ate less.
He then pondered for a while and then
pronounced for all of us to hear
Eat Less and Love More
Loving other people, mentally, emotionally
and physically, cleaning out your mind and body of accumulated toxins. It is
not good to gather such things in your body, it would react badly, he
continued.
Eat Less and Love more
We all echoed
A sage indeed!
The current day city-state of Singapore is
only 48 years old, not mature enough to forge a cultural identity of its own,
apart from the state sponsored propaganda. He was born at a time of solid Chinese
values, but not the modern ones of selfishness, greed and arrogance.
A visiting Malaysian Chinese businessman in
our group noted, after Lee Kuan Yew, the founding father of Singapore, Lim
might be the wisest that island has produced!
I couldn't agree more.
As we were leaving, he runs off to his car,
at 85 he drives himself whether in the chaos of Bangkok traffic or to his
aquatic farm 300 km away, he brings back a small package (ubiquitous in the
sidewalk stalls and stores in Bangkok, but he stands by the quality of his
gift) and hands it over to the Malaysian visitor
I have plenty of these; keep it in case you
need it!
All of us knew what was inside the box!
