By Zhang Li-yun
Edited and translated by Wu Hsiao-ting
Photos by Yan Lin-zhao
Chen Lin Shui-jin, though 102 years old, continues to find joy in helping others and working diligently. Her resilience, diligence, and generous spirit have been passed down to her daughter Qia.
Mother and daughter, Chen Lin Shui-jin and Chen Qia, are hardworking, resilient, and share a generous spirit.
Chen Lin Shui-jin’s (陳林水錦) century-long life has been marked by tireless hard work. Born into a farming family in the mountains of Zhushan Township, Nantou County, central Taiwan, she grew up in an era when Taiwan was a relatively impoverished society. In those days, having enough to eat was a blessing, and an education was a luxury beyond reach. Consequently, she never attended school or learned to read.
After marrying, she left the mountains and settled by a waterway, where her husband cultivated water spinach hydroponically. Every morning, around three or four, she would head to the fields in the dark, wading through water to harvest the fresh, tender greens. At daybreak, her husband would take the produce to the market for wholesale.
As their family grew to six, the income from farming and selling water spinach became insufficient to support their household. To make ends meet, her husband started a wood processing factory, and Shui-jin began working there as well. Even after their children grew up and she no longer needed to help support the family, she couldn’t sit idle. She began collecting discarded cardboard and scrap metal to sell, earning a small income for herself. Her daughter Chen Qia (陳洽), who ran a general store in Zhushan, readily gave her the shop’s used boxes.
In the early 2000s, Qia suggested, “Those cardboard boxes don’t bring much money. Why not donate them to Tzu Chi?” Moved by the suggestion, Shui-jin agreed without hesitation, turning her recycling efforts into a meaningful contribution. She even made up the difference herself when the proceeds fell short of a thousand Taiwanese dollars (US$33).
For a time, Shui-jin volunteered at the Tzu Chi Zhushan Recycling Station on Wednesdays and Saturdays. But at home, she remained restless. Over time, signs of memory decline emerged, leaving her confused over simple things. For example, she would often pick up fruits from the table, squeeze them, and ask, “What is this?” Her daughter-in-law, who lived with her, discussed the situation with Qia. Hoping to slow her cognitive decline, they arranged for her to attend a Tzu Chi senior day care center on weekdays. On Saturdays, she continued volunteering at the recycling station.
Now over a hundred years old, Shui-jin continues to work with remarkable precision at the recycling station. She sorts bottles with accuracy and folds newspapers neatly. Qia noted her mother’s deep devotion to recycling. Though Shui-jin may not understand complex philosophies or know how to read, her simple wisdom and heartfelt desire to help others shine through in her words: “Recycling is great—the proceeds can be used for charitable purposes.”
In this childhood photograph, Qia (second from left) nestles against her mother, Shui-jin (third from left). Courtesy of Chen Qia
Willingly repaying her karmic debt
Chen Qia was born in 1953. She remembers helping her father at the wood processing factory even as a young elementary school student. She assisted with tasks like moving lumber, which was turned into everyday items such as clothes hangers, rice spatulas, and spoons. She shared that her father had suffered a severe burn on his right hand in an oil lamp accident during his childhood. The injury required treatment at Camillian Saint Mary’s Hospital Luodong. The hospital, aware of the family’s financial struggles, waived the medical expenses. While her father recovered, four fingers on his injured hand eventually atrophied. In the end, only his thumb remained functional. Undeterred by this disability, he continued to develop new products for the factory, including bamboo fruit baskets, plates, and handbags for export.
Before her marriage, Qia was her father’s right-hand helper, skillfully balancing factory work and household tasks. These experiences shaped her into a hardworking and resilient person, like her mother. These qualities became vital when her life took a new direction after marriage, when she took on the demanding role of caring for her elderly father-in-law and two mothers-in-law. (It was not uncommon for men of earlier generations to practice polygamy.) These caregiving responsibilities made it impossible for her to continue to assist her father at the factory. Around the same time, Taiwan’s rising labor costs and increased global competition led many factories to relocate overseas. Consequently, her family decided to close the factory and open a mom-and-pop store instead.
In 1998, Qia found herself caught in a financial crisis when a member of a private credit group she managed misappropriated funds and disappeared, causing the group to collapse. She told her husband, “I’m the head of this credit group. I can’t betray the trust of those involved. I’ll find a way to fix this. Money can be earned again, and if I work hard, we’ll get through this.” Determined to protect others from the fallout, she took full responsibility for the debts and vowed to repay them. She seized every opportunity to earn money, sacrificing sleep and enduring physical exhaustion to meet her goals.
Her challenges intensified in September 1999, when a massive earthquake struck central Taiwan, devastating Zhushan Township. The earthquake damaged her store and warehouse, leaving goods scattered in disarray across the floor. It took nearly two months to restore order. The strain of repair costs, combined with her existing debts, left her feeling overwhelmed.
Life’s trials didn’t stop there. In 1998, her father-in-law passed away. After that, her older mother-in-law lost her sense of purpose and gradually developed dementia. Then her younger mother-in-law began showing similar symptoms. For over a decade, Qia and her sister-in-law took turns caring for them. Despite these challenges, Qia remained committed to giving back to society. She continued her long-term financial support for the Taiwan Fund for Children and Families, a nonprofit that aids vulnerable children and families. Grateful for the care her father had received years earlier, she also made regular donations to Saint Mary’s Hospital. In addition, she became a Tzu Chi donating member through a recommendation from Xie Jin-mu (謝金木), a wholesaler in southern Taiwan.
One day, Tzu Chi volunteer You Shu-juan (尤淑娟) visited her store and noticed a portrait of Dharma Master Cheng Yen on the wall. Curious about the portrait, You asked about it, and Qia explained that it had been a gift from Xie Jin-mu. The two women quickly bonded, and Qia shared the burdens of her debts and family responsibilities, expressing her frustrations. You offered gentle guidance: “Master Cheng Yen teaches that this is ‘shared karma.’ If you accept and repay karmic debts willingly, you’ll get a discount; if you resist, you’ll pay double. It’s not worth it.” She urged Qia to face her challenges with a positive mindset, reminding her that resistance only deepens suffering.
You also urged her to open her heart: “There are others who suffer even more than you. By focusing less on your difficulties, you’ll feel lighter.” She suggested that Qia inspire goodness in her customers, encouraging them to contribute to worthy causes to help those in need.
You’s words resonated deeply with Qia, sparking a shift in her mindset. From that point on, whenever she felt frustrated or down, she reminded herself to shift her perspective from negativity to positivity. Gradually, she found greater peace of mind. In addition to managing her store, she began volunteering with Tzu Chi, collecting recyclables to support the foundation’s recycling efforts.
Shui-jin, 102, expertly sorts recyclables, placing each item in its designated basket.
Putting oneself to good use
After closing her store in the evenings, Chen Qia and her neighbor would each grab a large plastic bag and take a walk along a local road, collecting recyclables as they went. The evening market proved to be a goldmine, with cardboard boxes, bottles, and cans scattered everywhere, waiting to be collected. By the end of the night, their haul would create a small mountain of recyclables in Qia’s family’s unused factory, giving her mother something productive to do the next morning.
This was in the early 2000s, and Shui-jin, then in her 70s, was still very agile. She would quickly and efficiently sort the paper, metal cans, and plastic bottles. Once everything was organized, she would call her daughter, and no matter how busy Qia was at her store, she’d say, “Hurry up and take the sorted recyclables to the recycling station!” or “Quickly bring more recyclables back so I can sort them!”
Qia often encouraged her mother to volunteer at a local Tzu Chi recycling station, but Shui-jin hesitated and frequently made excuses not to do so. She didn’t know any of the volunteers and was concerned about feeling out of place. However, when she finally visited the station one day, she was greeted warmly by the volunteers there and quickly enjoyed the lively atmosphere. Turning to her daughter, she exclaimed, “Why didn’t you bring me here sooner?” From that day on, she went every day. On occasions when Qia was too busy to drive her, she would complain, “I’m so bored at home! So bored!”
Because Shui-jin had spent long hours in the fields picking water spinach and soaking her feet in the water when she was younger, she often struggled with swollen feet in her later years, which kept her awake at night. Sometimes, she would get up in the middle of the night and walk around to reduce the swelling before finally managing to fall back asleep. Her reliance on sleeping pills grew, and her memory began to fade. Even after taking her pills with dinner, she would ask for more before bed. However, after she started volunteering at the recycling station, she began to fall asleep more easily, and over time, her dependence on sleeping pills greatly decreased.
The most trying but also happy times
Chen Qia inherited not only her mother’s diligence and resilience but also her generosity. Shui-jin consistently donates money to help whenever she hears of someone in need. When impoverished people pass away, she covers the cost of their coffins. Qia said, “Children are often encouraged to perform good deeds to accumulate spiritual merits for their parents, but I believe my mother has already earned countless blessings through her own actions.”
Qia’s father passed away at 89. She feels fortunate that she didn’t marry far from home, as it has enabled her to care for her mother. Her greatest joy has been introducing her mother to Tzu Chi, allowing them to work together as recycling volunteers. Qia has endured some of the most difficult times of her life over the past 20-plus years, yet she remains confident that she has made the most meaningful choices.
Giving has become second nature to her. Despite injuring her right hand while moving recyclables and undergoing three surgeries to treat trigger finger in her left hand, she never hesitates to respond to calls for recycling collections, regardless of the volume or weight of the materials. She approaches the work with gratitude, growing stronger with each challenge and feeling fulfilled through her service. “Recycling feels like my second career,” remarked Qia. “Even if I work as hard as an ox every day, I see it as a form of spiritual practice. I willingly take on these tasks and complete them with a contented heart.”
The thought of retirement has never crossed her mind. She deeply appreciates her husband’s unwavering support, which has been a source of strength. “Tzu Chi is already a part of my life—an essential aspect of who I am,” she affirmed.
Through their shared commitment to recycling and steadfast dedication to helping others, the mother and daughter have not only enriched their own lives but have also left an indelible mark on this Earth. Together, they have found joy in their work—not driven by material rewards, but for the peace and purpose it brings.
