By Geoff Tan

ITUNED in to RazorTV (www.razor.tv) last week to check out this recently-launched innovative web-TV platform, and stumbled onto a programme entitled Point Blank On Begging.

In one segment, Daryl, one of the presenters, disguised himself as a Thai beggar to see how generous and open Singaporeans were to giving money to foreign beggars.

The first person to drop some coins into his bowl was a student. Adults followed suit.

Then, there came a group of four schoolchildren who consulted with each other and eventually pooled their money for Daryl.

The part I remember most vividly was when one girl dug deeply into her coin pouch and scraped up what seemed to be all the money she had.

The bottom line? In a matter of half an hour, $12.20 was collected, signifying that Singaporeans sure are a generous bunch.

This exercise showed how the younger fraternity seemed more open to giving, compared with adults.

Being less inhibited and not influenced by the sceptical nature of the world are but two explanations for this phenomenon.

In the United States, Generation X millionaires gave nearly twice as much on average to charitable causes than older generations, according to Northern Trust's third annual Wealth In America survey of highnet-worth individuals and families.

I guess this younger bunch understood what Sir Winston Churchill meant when he said: "We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give."

Not only are the younger set leading the way in the art of giving and philanthropy, they seem to be also leading in the art of chivalry (although many of them probably don't know it by this label).

Case in point: I was commuting by MRT from Raffles Place to Braddell last week.

Two unassuming primary-school boys boarded the train and took their seats.

At the first stop, one of the boys caught sight of a woman with a stroller, and purposefully called out to her to offer his seat.

It really took me by surprise how sincere he was about his offer and how well-spoken he was.

Glancing at his shirt, I read a tag that said "Kamala" (which I believe is his name) and BRPS (which I later discovered to be Blangah Rise Primary School).

A Korean woman standing nearby was so impressed at the way the boy conducted himself, she commended him for his chivalrous gesture.

Nineteenth-century American statesman and orator Henry Clay got it right when he said: "Courtesies of a small and trivial character are the ones which strike deepest in the grateful and appreciating heart."

So, if you think that the only things you can possibly learn from the younger generation are the playing of computer games and hip-hop dancing, it's about time to change your mindset.

If the two incidents cited above are any gauge of the integrity of today's youth, then all I can say to them is: "Keep it up! Whatever you're doing, you're doing it right."

I am truly proud, yet humbled, by what I saw.

I have since convinced myself to be more open-minded and to learn from anyone, regardless of age and creed. C'mon, give it to me!

myp@sph.com.sg

The writer is a senior vice-president of the SPH marketing division and the general manager of SPH NewMedia for Zapcode.

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