I was on this outreach healthcare activity last month at a nearby shopping mall. It was for the National Health Screening Initiative (NHSI) programme. As I sat there, people-watching, a thought came to mind.

Some families really go out to the mall to spend time with each other and relax. They were not in a rush to finish a meal or run some errands. They take their time to sit on the benches or the table in the restaurant, talk to each other and enjoy their meals. It made me think back to the last time I did such things. I mean, when was the last time that I had all the time in the world where I did not have to walk very fast in the mall to achieve a goal? In other words, I am not going to the shopping complexes specifically to get an outfit. Or going to Aeon just to have dinner and rush back home.

Small talk within a family is important. They provide clues about crucial things our loved ones are experiencing. Unfortunately, not all small talk is well entertained. A gripe can be deemed a minor inconvenience that could be easily handled. However, what the complainant seeks may be more of some mutual support and agreement. Inevitably, due to frequent dismissal, small banter is no longer exchanged, and the dinner table becomes quiet. Cause small talk somehow becomes a waste of time.

I found out that my daughter needed glasses through small talk. She was telling me about her day at school, as usual, with her animated expressions of herself, her friends and an imitation of her teacher. She said she couldn’t see the board very well from her seat, to which the teacher replied cheekily, ‘You need to check your eyes’. A few weeks after, as I sent up her potluck food to her class, I knew that her teacher was right, as the distance of my daughter’s table and the board was not that far. So yes, she does need an eye exam.

It was confirmed. She did need glasses. Sometimes, looking after our family’s health doesn’t begin in a clinic. It begins with listening at home.