Footsteps

The twenty-first century dawned. Before the sun lifted the city from darkness, I was already standing at the doorway of the Tzu Chi Taipei branch office, ready to document Master Cheng Yen's footsteps on New Year's Day. Apart from me, many Tzu Chi people and neighborhood residents had come to see the Master off. A look of anticipation and admiration was on everyone's face, warming the chilly winter morning.

The time was six-forty, and Master Cheng Yen was due to come out at any minute. Although she was supposed to leave the Taipei office at seven, past experience told me that the Master, who always races against time, would leave earlier than scheduled. "We do not own our body, but only the right to use it," the Master often reminds her disciples. "Be sure to treasure time, and never let a chance to do a good deed slip by." She sets herself as an example for others to follow.

At ten before seven, the Master stepped out of the office door. In a second I captured this moment in a photo--a picture that has since meant much to me.

I believe Master Cheng Yen has made enormous contributions to Buddhism. In many places Buddhism is often ritualized, but the Master has humanized it, emphasizing that the Buddha's teachings should be practiced in daily life. She successfully combines the faith of religion with the strength of society in doing social work. Some have praised her for reforming Buddhism by enthusiastically engaging in this-worldly affairs with an other-worldly spirit, but the Master humbly says that she is merely restoring the Buddha's original philosophy of going into society to serve suffering beings.

April 17 marked the thirty-fifth anniversary of the Tzu Chi Foundation, an organization that began with thirty members and now has four million worldwide. In order to envelop the world with love, the Master leads all Tzu Chi people step by step in carrying out the eight missions of charity, medical care, educational development, cultural promotion, international relief, bone marrow donor registry, environmental protection and community service. During the past three decades, Tzu Chi people have persistently abided by the Master's instruction to spread the Great Love of kindness, compassion, joy and unselfish giving to every corner of the world. The Master's first few steps on the first day of the twenty-first century symbolized that her resolute leadership will guide all Tzu Chi people in the world to bravely stride across the new century.

Blessing the world

Every month, the Master visits the Tzu Chi offices around Taiwan to keep abreast of the development of projects and to encourage the staff and volunteers. The January trip is usually the longest and toughest one for the Master, since Chinese New Year blessing ceremonies are usually held in this month. The Master conducts ceremonies at each branch to certify new commissioners and Honorary Board members of the foundation, and to bless all Tzu Chi people. To express her gratitude to everyone, she personally hands out an exquisitely made "Red Envelope of Wisdom and Blessing" to tens of thousands of participants. Such special gifts are made possible through the Master's royalties from her books.

From where I sat on the bus, I could see her reflection in the window. Although she had a severe bout of the flu, the Master remained in good spirits throughout the whole trip, truly demonstrating the resolution she makes each year: "I ask not for good health, but for wisdom and acuity; I ask not for a lighter burden, but for greater strength; I ask not for success in all endeavors, but for perseverance and courage."

At the turn of the century, Taiwan seemed to be besieged by chaos and mutual distrust between people. The local media interviewed many prominent figures, hoping they might wisely point out a direction for the general public to follow. Master Cheng Yen was on the list. However, she humbly replied, "There are so many disasters in the world, I'd better do what I should to help the needy instead of making a comment." Relieving all beings from their suffering has been the Master's purpose in life. During each Blessing Ceremony, the Master reminded all to work together harmoniously with one heart and mind. To Tzu Chi people, Master Cheng Yen's instruction is never a lecture or a mere slogan to be chanted. They practice it with conviction: "Learn it while doing it and do it while learning it." Tzu Chi people act like a pure stream washing away the mire of the world as they strive to practice the Master's teachings and make the planet a better place to live. When I think of this, I feel the future is still hopeful.

Visiting an injured worker

Day after day, after getting up at three thirty and saying her morning prayers alone in her room, the Master is occupied with waves of visitors. No matter how busy she is, she never loses her composure and can attend to several events in good order at the same time.

Today was no exception. As she sat in a meeting on international relief in the Taichung branch office, a bone marrow donor suddenly came to see her. The Master could not only remember his name without hesitation, but also the names of his pregnant wife and unborn baby. While greeting the guests, the Master also listened to commissioners' reports on resource recycling and other charity work. In addition to all this, she would glance at the television every now and then to see programs produced by the Tzu Chi TV station. Nothing escaped her eyes.

In the afternoon, the Master insisted on taking time out of her tight schedule to visit a worker injured while working on Project Hope, Tzu Chi's plan for rebuilding schools damaged in the earthquake of September 21, 1999. When we arrived, 26-year-old Wang Chi-wen was still in a coma. Tzu Chi has constantly required all contractors to make safety their first priority. Yet despite all safety measures, the accident still happened. It seems that death is beyond human control.

Wang's parents, waiting outside the ICU, were surprised and grateful to see the Master. The Master stood beside young Wang's bed and bent over to whisper softly, "Mr. Wang, I came to see you. Can you hear me?" There was only silence. The Master gently straightened the comforter and held his hand as if trying to give him strength to go through this most difficult time of his life. Genuine concern emanated from the slim nun, embracing the fragile life on the bed.

On the first day of the new century, a young man was about to leave the world. He might have been just an ordinary man, but he occupied an important part in the Master's heart.

Shouldering responsibility

Tzu Chi members come from all walks of life, ranging from executives of big enterprises to illiterate old folks. But in Tzu Chi everyone is on an equal standing and addresses each other as brother and sister.

It is the selfless dedication of these members and the capability of the core cadres that have resulted in Tzu Chi's amazing efficiency. Vice President Lin Pi-yu is one of the key cadres playing a pivotal role in Project Hope. Her capability is shown in her attitude and decisiveness. Although she is on the supervising side, her helpful attitude demonstrates that she is there to help solve problems, not give orders. She visited over ten schools on the second day of the New Year. The problems each school faces at different stages are diverse, but she can get to the point and solve them right away. For example, when workers remarked that truckloads of dirt needed to be added to raise the playground to the level of the school buildings, she immediately decided that it would be better to build wide steps up the slope. Besides saving money, they could be used as bleachers for the kids. In order to make the best use of her time in Puli, she gathered personnel from the school construction sites in the Puli area for a lunch meeting. Difficult issues were discussed and solved over the lunch table.

This picture shows the Master at Tachi Middle School in Chiayi County during her island-wide tour in February. Ms. Lin and Chiang Tzu-chao, a volunteer construction commissioner, stood on either side of her. I took the picture from this angle to show how the heavy burden of Project Hope stood on the shoulders of the petite Master. Fortunately she has got capable people as her assistants and many Tzu Chi people sharing the load.

I have been documenting Tzu Chi's Project Hope for over a year and have met many admirable people. This year has certainly been a valuable education for me.

The Tzu Chi Train

Most Tzu Chi people have at least once taken the Tzu Chi Train to Hualien, where the Abode of Still Thoughts--the spiritual home of Tzu Chi people--is located. On weekends, many train coaches are fully occupied by Tzu Chi people in their "blue-sky-and-white-cloud" uniform. Thus, it was dubbed the "Tzu Chi Train."

Today, there was a different mini-Tzu Chi train at Chichi Elementary School. Wang Tuan-cheng, Tzu Chi vice president, and Li Feng-shih, leader of the Tzu Cheng Faith Corps northern district, played the locomotive with Principal Chien of the school and over two hundred Tzu Cheng Faith Corps members playing the coaches.

This school was creatively designed by one of Taiwan's most famous architects, Kris Yao. Since Chichi town is known for its historical train station, Yao used railroad ties to pave the walkway which stretches from the entrance to the activity hall. Along both sides of the walkway, trees were planted. They will transform the path into a green tunnel when they are fully grown, welcoming students to the school. The school will certainly become another town landmark.

"Choo-choo," this Tzu Chi Train began moving as Master Cheng Yen arrived. Like little kids, these adults, some aged over sixty, sang loudly as they rolled their arms like turning wheels. The Master laughed heartily at their funny, playful gestures.

A happy, humble principal

Hsukuang Middle School, seriously damaged by the earthquake, has been blessed with two strokes of luck. First, Tzu Chi is building a brand new school for its 1,200 students. Second, the school has been upgraded to a six-year high school. Principal Chang Chung-chang was especially happy. He not only wore his happiness on his face, but made the news known to the whole town. At a crossroads nearby, the school had erected a little tower of gratitude with a plaque which said, "Thank you, Tzu Chi, for building our school, which has become a complete high school now!" Along the road, flags inscribed with the same sentence flapped in the wind and joyfully carried the good news.

I have visited this school a few times, but the visit on September 19, 2000, stands out in my mind. On that day, some seventh-grade students were standing outside the school clinic waiting to have their height measured. As I passed by, I jokingly said, "The shortest and the tallest students, remember to tell me your height later." Then I walked away to shoot the ninth-grade basketball match. The competition was keen. I ran around the court to take the best shots, totally putting what I had said out of my mind.

When the game ended, someone pulled on my bag. I turned around to see a student standing behind me. He said in a serious manner, "Sir, I am 134 centimeters [4.6 ft] tall, the shortest in the class." Chang Chia-liang was his name. What a sweet, mindful kid he was.

Hsukuang Middle School has become Hsukuang High School. As we were leaving, some students asked to have a picture taken with the Master. However, the humble Principal Chang stood on the far right, instead of in the center. After everyone noticed this "mistake," another picture was taken. Yet I still like the first one because genuine happiness was shining on the principal's face.

A long way to go

Among the more than fifty schools in Project Hope, over forty schools are currently under construction. Master Cheng Yen, who has visited them numerous times, encourages Tzu Chi employees to visit these schools in order to gain a better understanding of Project Hope.

The first group to go included supervisors of the Tzu Chi Foundation, the heads of the Tzu Chi university, high school and elementary school, and the principals of the schools built by Tzu Chi.

Before departing, the Master gave a talk to all the principals, a talk I thought was profoundly meaningful and touching. These are her words:

"The construction of many schools is nearly finished. All schools are built with materials, such as steel-reinforced concrete, that are usually used in high-rises. I am certain no earthquake will topple these schools again, and they will serve as refugee centers for their communities in times of disasters. All these schools are truly works of art, for they were designed by the best architects in Taiwan, blending the beauty of classical Chinese academies with the modern genre. But just constructing a beautiful building is not enough--we have to reconstruct the ethics of education and truly shoulder our responsibility as educators. Besides teaching students how to take exams, we must show them the way to live properly and teach them the value of life and the importance of respecting all lives including their own. In sum, we must give the children an education of unselfishness and Great Love... Let us not only care for our own schools, but also strive to improve educational ethics in Taiwan. Let us set ourselves as good examples, so that others will follow our lead."

This picture was taken on March 1, when the Master was about to leave Tali Middle School. With the setting sun as the backdrop, Master Cheng Yen walked on the muddy construction ground and gazed far off, as if telling herself there is still a long way to go.