.... of change and the need to change for the better

The transformation of Puduraya Bus Terminal.

When Yours Sincerely ( Y S ) was a student, going to Kuala Lumpur ( K L ) from Pasir Puteh, Kelantan was by Mara Express Bus. This bus would stopped at the Puduraya Bus Terminal in the wee hours of the morning. Having no friends, kiths and kins in K L , Y S had to wait for the sun to rise before he could go about conducting his business. The old Puduraya Bus Terminal was dirty, polluted, stinky, unsightly, dangerous, crowded, messy and all the negative adjectives you could think of. It has recently been resurrected to be a first world bus terminal as you can see in the photos.

The moral of it is that a place can go through such transformation, can human nature do so ? Many a time, people commented that they were born and bred that way and there is no way they can change come what may ! " I am like that already " is a common statement.

There was a young female teacher whom Y S observed in a staff development session who spoke in hardly audible voice to a huge class of 45 students. When gently commented, she replied that she had used the maximum volume God had given her. Until today her pupils have to strain their ears to hear her. If the young feel that they cannot change then the older ones would feel hardened and fossilized.

Y S remembers his late 3rd sister who kept on to one fashion of dressing for all her life. The good lady had never tried blue jeans, pants or shorts. Some would never venture to try food cooked by other cultures but stick to their palate all their lives even when they are overseas. Y S has a friend who is still driving his 35 year old Mazda car ( The company had since defunct for years) , not so much for its antique value but rather his unchangeable human nature.

There are also friends who do not change their negative , quarrelsome, hot headed, selfish, unsavory, strongly opinionated, unforgiving and repulsive behaviors and mannerisms all these years. Many sadly carried them to their graves and were thorns in the flesh of many people when they lived.

Y S believes we must not only change but be prepared for changes. Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe once said that " Life belongs to the living, and he who lives must change and be prepared for changes." (Darkened words are Y S ' ) That is to change within us and also respond to the changes around us. If we don't change, we don't grow. If we don't grow, we aren't really living.

In the final analysis, it is important to remember that we cannot become what we need to be by remaining what we are. Change is inevitable if we are still above the ground.