LOHAS Ah Kang
Life can be rich and colorful, or as ephemeral as dawn.When facing with crippling adversities and irreversible destiny,
The gardener harrows forward with renewed effort and energy.Every seed of life is sown with dedication,
And land plowed with determination and intrepidity,Earthy smiles and delicate songs,
Sings a harvest and glorious reap.
Written by Wan-Lin Wu
Wen-Kang Yang’s Life with Spinocerebellar Ataxia
LIFE-CONQUERING PROFILE
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I n a f r ig id w in t ry morn ing, the
temperature outside was below fifteen
degrees centigrade. Wen-Kang Yang
(nicknamed Uncle Ah Kang) spends half-
an-hour stretching on the bed, then
managed to standup by holding the sides
of the bed. He wears little except his usual
raincoat to stay warm. Supporting himself
with a walker in one hand, he uses his
other hand to sweep with a broom. Over
the last six months, his body’s involuntary
spasm has worsened to a point he could
hardly make his own breakfast. But Yang’s
preference for cleanliness never waned.
His early morning sweeping is the ritual to
start a new day.
Difficulties Foster Perseverance: A Life Reclaimed on the Farm
The 59 year old Yang lives by himself
on a small farm in Hualien’s foothills of
Ji’an, affectionately known as “Uncle
Ah Kang.” His Hakka parents brought
him and nine siblings to Hualien from
western Taiwan to work as laborers for
the Japanese occupation force. Despite
his large family’s poverty, Ah Kang often
remembers his parents’ loving attention to
the children.
At the age of eight, Ah Kang first
developed a persistent high fever. His
parents did their best to get him treatment
but were too poor to get him regular shots
or even examinations. The young Ah Kang
was frequently losing his balance and
falling as he walked. What was flat ground
to other people looked hilly and uneven to
him. Although movement was increasingly
difficult for him, Ah Kang never avoided
responsibility; he took care for the family
cows and collected firewood from the hills
even while falling and stumbling along the
way.
Uncle Ah Kang said, “In fact, I knew
I was ill from an early age...” His tilts
and shakes prevented him from riding
a bike even as a teenager. His oldest
brother thought it was Ah Kang’s ploy to
avoid doing chores and beat him with a
dustpan. When Tzu Chi established its
first Buddhist hospital in Hualien in 1986,
Ah Kang was in his thirties and visited
Tzu Chi Hospital for his first ever check
up. A physician explained for the first time
why he had been losing his balance and
shaking for all those years: a rare disorder
called “spinocerebellar ataxia.”
Although the doctor did not tel l
him the disease is incurable, Ah Kang
understood that years of hardship lay
ahead of him. But at least he had a name
for his condition. Back home, he looked
over the green farmland he worked hard to
cultivate. It was so real; so he immediately
forgot about the physician’s explanation of
spinocerebellar ataxia.
Ah Kang moved out of the family
house seven years ago to avoid making
trouble for his brothers and sisters. He
sold a small piece of land his father had
left him, raised some money and built a
small house on the remaining land. Always
passionate about growing f lowering
plants, he then began to grow roses to
support himself, and taking advantage of
the clean air and water in the Ji’an area
of the Central Mountain range. Ah Kang’s
rose garden business eventually became
successful.
The young Uncle Ah Kang is wearing rain boots and standing next to the fields in high spirits, he is proud to be a farmer.
Snapshot of Uncle Ah Kang’s life – crawling and planting in the verdant field.
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The Stumbling Gardener
Unc le Ah Kang, who had on ly
graduated from primary school, has
become a professional farmer through
self study and hard work. Although Uncle
Ah Kang has to take at least half a day to
complete work that others could finish in
an hour, but his vegetables and flowers
grow better than other farms. Uncle Ah
Kang’s constant falling and standing has
gained him the nicknames “Roly-Poly
Farmer”, and “Stumbling Gardener”, yet
he never gives up. In his belief, “I cannot
compete with others in physique, energy
and personal strength, but I can win with
through perseverance and diligence.”
Uncle Ah Kang had always grown
roses. However, through his contacts
with Tzu Chi members and volunteers, he
learned about the idea that healthy food
comes from healthy soil. Five years ago,
he decided to grow organic products and
had his land lay fallow for two years. Then
he grew rice on all the land to improve the
quality of the soil. In order to transform his
land for planting vegetables, he did not
have any income for three years. Uncle Ah
Kang said, “I am a farmer. I know growing
rice will lose money. But because I am
going to grow vegetables, I have to grow
rice to improve the quality of the soil. The
roots of the rice plants will absorb the
harmful impurities from the soil.”
Having decided to cultivate organic
products, Uncle Ah Kang threw himself
into harnessing the art of organic farming.
But it took lots of time and effort to master
this new way of farming. No longer using
herbicides and chemical fertilizers, he
had to manually weed, remove pests,
and make compost. So much extra
work was a huge new burden on his
already handicapped body. The workload
even made Uncle Ah Kang, who was
accustomed to the back-breaking work,
complained a little about the hardships of
organic farming.
However, whenver the workload
piles on, Uncle Ah Kang’s Hakka nature
of fortitude would sustain him. As a
conventional farmer he has to compete
with the mass-production farms. Plus, he
could not bring his crops to the farmer’s
market by himself, so it would be hard
to make ends meet. Growing organic
produce, on the other hand, would
connect him to a group of customers and
friends who share his ideology, opening
up a new and less developed market.
Eventually, through plowing and rotational Uncle Ah Kang said, “Every day is a workday. Sunny days are good for fertilizing. Rainy days are good for weeding. When I am working, I love to wear my Tzu Chi University jacket that I bought at a fund raising campaign.”
Uncle Ah Kang irrigates his fields with love. The vegetables and flowers in the farmland responds with lush growth.
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farming, he has mastered the inter-
relationships between crops and insects.
“I affectionately look after my flowers and
vegetables, I let them drink mountain
spring water flowing from Tungmunlung
Creek, while talking and singing to them in
the fields.”
Uncle Ah Kang has lived by himself
for so long, his plants have become his
best friends. His efforts paid off when
crops f lourish. Uncle Ah Kang said,
“Planting flowers and vegetables is like
the relationship between a husband and
wife in a marriage. If we love them a little,
they will repay us a little. If we are good
to them, they will be true. If we do not
feed them properly, they will not prosper.”
These few sentences summarizes the
wisdom Uncle Ah Kang gained from his
farming experience.
Living Simply yet Giving Generously
Even though his spinocerebellar ataxia
is medically incurable, Uncle Ah Kang
remains optimistic, kind and enduring. He
works hard and maintains his own lifestyle
without any help. He uses his own hands
to plow the fields. He is sincere with his
friends. For the same price of NT$25 for a
cauliflower, he always chooses the largest
one for his customers. Since his health
has deteriorated in the last six months, he
could only sell one-third of his vegetables.
He starts to worry he would not be able
to pay back the money he has borrowed
to purchase the vegetable seedlings.
But he still refuses to accept offers from
kind customers for excess changes. He
insists on treating everyone equally and is
unwilling to accept anything extra.
Most of Uncle Ah Kang’s customers
willingly come to buy vegetables because
they admire his sincerity and integrity.
He is able to lead a frugal life, although
barely on the little income he has made
in selling vegetables. He considers his
routine dish – simmered luffa gourd with
rice – the most delicious meal. He is very
grateful for the help he has received from
his friends. The kind Uncle Ah Kang also
realizes that there are many other people
who need help. Sometimes, he would
donate all the proceeds from sale of his
flowers. Sometimes he would regularly
give his meager income to Tzu Chi
Foundation, Pitts School and other charity
organizations. When he is in good health,
he also volunteers in nursing homes.
“People looked after me before, now
I will look after others who are in need”
he said. When he works in the fields, he
usually wears a secondhand jacket with
“Tzu Chi University” embroidered on the
back. The jacket was the gift he bought
for himself during a charitable fund raising
campaign.
His difficulty in moving around and
slow speech leads some people to think
he is also mentally challenged. But this
primary school graduate actually enjoys
reading the chapters of “Great Learning”
and “Doctrine of the Mean” in the ancient
Chinese classics – The Four Books.
“I didn’t understand a bit at the
beginning. The words are so difficult
to comprehend but after two or three
readings, I was able to make sense of it.”
Uncle Ah Kang said.
The books contain wisdom of words
that enlightened Uncle Ah Kang who
learned from it to improve his people
skills. When people make fun of him or
take advantage of his slow responses, he
applies the wisdom of words found in the
books without hurting anyone or making
himself feel bad.
Uncle Ah Kang’s Unyielding Attitude – Draws Admirations from Doctors and Teachers
Despite his best effort, the disease
has progressed slowly. Two years ago
while he was doing laundry one morning,
he fainted and fell next to the washing
machine. No one knew or noticed his
fall ing. After some time, he regained
consciousness and crawled to call for
assistance.
At the hospital, doctors found blood
Dr. An-Bang Liu and Uncle Ah Kang – A doctor and a patient, an amateur farmer and the professional farmer.
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clots in his brain and put him into the
intensive care unit for several days. But
after being discharged, he was troubled
by dizziness and headache, making daily
tasks difficult. So he sought treatment
from Dr. An-Bang Liu at Hualien Tzu Chi
Hospital’s neurology department.
Dr. Liu told him that his case is very
unusual, having occurred early in life yet
developing slowly. Later, Tzu Chi Hospital
sponsored an internat ional medical
forum that included presentations from
professors from Utah University in Salt
Lake City. The professors are known for
their spinocerebellar ataxia research.
Doctor Liu arranged to have Uncle Ah
Kang examined but the Utah team could
not offer any new treatment options.
Throughout everything, Uncle Ah
Kang continues to face the world with
a smile. His positive
a t t i t ude impresses
Dr. Liu to a point that
the doctor fee ls he
has to do something
to help Ah Kang. Dr.
Liu’s whole family has
assisted Uncle Ah Kang
with the planting of the
vegetables. He also
helps to sell vegetables
online. Eventually many
s t a f f f ro m T z u C h i
University, Da-Ai TV station (news center
of the eastern division), and Hualien Tzu
Chi Hospital has bought their vegetables
from Uncle Ah Kang.
Knowing some city-dwellers’ interests
in farming, Uncle Ah Kang announced
that he was willing to lease his fertile fields
to friends who would like to experience
farming. He would like everyone to enjoy
the happiness associated with getting
close to the land. Dr. Liu took him up on
the offer and often visits his fields to learn
transplanting and how to make compost.
Dr. Liu said he is amazed by the fact that
although Uncle An Kang unwell, and
knows his days are numbered, he can still
be positive, smile and never complain. He
works hard to cope with life as if he is not
a martyr to the disorder. Sometimes Dr. Liu
would like to suggest some of the patients
who whined about minor discomfort to
come and visit Uncle Ah Kang.
Switching from conventional to organic farming, Uncle Ah Kang does not mind losing money so as to have healthy land and share healthy food. Many teachers, doctors, and Tzu Chi members enjoy picking their own vegetables.
With only primary school education, the talented Uncle Ah Kang always devotes in whatever he is doing. He won a photography contest. He also asked his friends to write notations in the “Great Learning” and “Doctrine of the Mean” chapters so that he could understand them better.
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Happy to Work Every Single Day
Uncle Ah Kang’s handicap makes it
difficult for him to leave his house, unless
he has to go to the doctor. His imobility
has compelled him to keep all his money
at home. During the 2009 Typhoon
Morakot disaster, Uncle Ah Kang lost his
balance, broke his arm and had to be
hospitalized. When he had returned from
the hospital, he discovered that all his
savings, almost NT$200,000 were stolen,
along with all the fishes from his backyard
pond. Even his flower pots and bonsais
disappeared.
Despite losing his life savings and
the fields devastated by typhoon, Uncle
Ah Kang managed to regain his positive
attitude. As soon as the arm began to
heal, he put on his poncho hanging on the
door and started cleaning up the fields.
He said,“It was really heartbreaking to
lose all my savings. But as a farmer, I have
to be able to manage myself before I can
manage my fields. There is work for rainy
days, and there is work for sunny days.”
Uncle Ah Kang stated his feelings as if the
misfortune never occurred to him.
Once again he laboriously plowed the
land, carefully irrigated it, and sang to the
vegetable seedlings. He started at dawn
and worked until dusk. He still faces every
day with a smile, and does not give up his
trust and confidence in people.
Live Life to the Fullest
Uncle Ah Kang’s hard work and
optimism touched many hearts. Dr. Liu still
helps him to sell the vegetables, and Hui-
Hsin Lu, a Tzu Chi University professor of
Religious and Cultural Studies, gives him
rides to the hospital when she has time.
Tzu Chi University teachers and students
help to make organic bacteria in the lab to
help his organic farming. Uncle Ah Kang
is a strong believer that “a drop of favor
from others should be repaid with wells of
thankfulness.” Uncle Ah Kang is touched
with so many people who care about him
and repeatedly said he could ever repay
so much kindness.
Having been born into a poor family,
Uncle Ah Kang’s life itself was almost a
miracle. He has remained single because
of his disorder, giving all his love to
his fields in the foothills of the Central
Mountains. When Dr. Liu finally frankly
told him that his disease is terminal,
Uncle Ah Kang acknowledged that he
had long known this disease since joining
the patient support group – the “Penguin
Family” – for spinocerebel lar ataxia
patients.
Knowing he is nearing the end of his
life, every morning the optimistic Uncle Ah
Kang steadfastly crawls to tend his fields.
He said, “I can only think that this is God’s
wish. My parents did not intend me to be
sick my whole life. Even suffering from
this disease, I must take good advantage
of this colorful world while I have the
opportunity.”
Picking up the ragged poncho, Uncle
Ah Kang crawls, one foot at a time, to
his fields so he could fertilize the lilies and
prepare them for blooming season. The
doctor has told him not to crawl anymore
because it would further aggravate his
damaged knee ligaments. But to Uncle Ah
Kang, the land is his haven and the source
of his life and energy.
“I have lived this long but I am not
afraid of death. If I have any regrets in
my life, I am only sorry that I have never
once experienced true love.” When he see
the lilies, tulips, and irises which he has
planted blooming one after another, he
smiles with total satisfaction. He knows
that plants and flowers also have feelings
that could warm his heart.
A l though h is hea l th and l i fe i s
diminishing, a new flower blossoms in his
heart every single day. Smiles without sadness. Uncle Ah Kang diligently adds colors to his life. His heart is like a spring, always blooming with flowers.
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