PETALING JAYA, August 5 — It was just another casual evening neighbourhood stroll for Sivasunthra Theva, but his choice of words to one man led to neighbours scampering for safety.
In a Facebook post, he shared about taking a brisk walk near his home, when upon passing a convenience store, he felt the need to make a purchase.
Realising that he had not brought any cash with him, Sivasunthra rang his family to send some cash while he waited.
While waiting for his family, he saw an old man burning joss papers by the road as part of an offering, and decided to have a chat to kill time.
Sivasunthra asked the old man what he was doing, to which he replied he was sending money to his family.
An expected answer given it’s the month of the Hungry Ghost, celebrated by Buddhists and Taoists, when restless spirits are said to roam the earth.
The old man then asked Sivasunthra the same question, to which he replied, “I’m waiting for my family to send me money.”
Startled, the old man’s face turned pale, as he got up and made a quick dash.
It definitely didn’t help that Sivasnthra shouted “Hey, don’t run! I’m just waiting for my family to send money to me!” loudly, which apparently led every other person burning joss papers around the area to run away frantically too.
While it wasn’t the wisest choice of words, social media had a field day, with the post receiving over 14,000 Likes and shared some 7,000 times in just three days.
Many users related to the people who ran away, as they commented on how they would have run too (as would I), saying, “Run, run, like you’ve never before.”
